Preparations – Chapter 1 – The Guns

“It’s for you,” Sharon called.

“Hello,” Gary answered, picking up the phone.

“What are you up to,” Ron’s bass voice came over the phone.

“I haven’t been up that long partner, so just trying to wake up,” Gary replied. “What’s
up?”

“Same old crap,” Ron laughed, “But I hadn’t talked to you in a month so I thought I’d
better make sure you were still alive.”

“I’m too ugly to die,” Gary laughed.

“You are that,” Ron agreed.

“Be nice,” Gary warned. “You buy the membership to the shooting range yet?”

“Money’s kind of tight,” Ron explained.

“Oh, Kevin is still living there, huh?” Gary

“Yeah, you know how it goes,” Ron replied, dejectedly. “Want to run by the gun store
and look at what they have in?”

“Give me an hour to clean up and I’ll go,” Gary suggested.

“See you at 10,” Ron answered, “Ciao.”

An hour later Ron pulled up in front of Gary and Sharon’s. Gary got in Ron’s car and
Ron pulled out.

“Talked to Clarence lately?” Ron asked.

“Called him maybe 3 weeks ago, and got the machine,” Gary said, “He called back the
next day. Said they had company from Alabama for a week.”

“How’s he doing?” Ron asked.

“His leg finally healed up,” Gary reported, “Said he was feeling ok. How’s Linda?”

“Same-o, same-o,” Ron laughed, “At our age nothing ever changes much.”

“We going to the gun store for anything in particular, or did you just want to get out of

1
the house?” Gary asked.

“Nothing special,” Ron said, “Thought I’d pick up a couple of bricks of .22’s and see
what she got in.”

“The last time we went you picked up a couple of bricks of 22’s,” Gary observed, “Have
you been shooting a lot or are you stockpiling?”

“Mostly stockpiling,” Ron answered, “You got off on that kick about writing survivalist fic-
tion and I got to thinking that I ought to be a little better prepared.”

“Did you ever finish reading that story I printed out for you?” Gary asked.

“I’m still working on it,” Ron answered, “But it got me to thinking and I have made a lot of
the preparations you suggested.”

“Oh, like what?” Gary asked.

“I’ve been adding ammo a little at a time and picking up a few extra groceries every time
we go to the store,” Ron explained. “How are your preparations coming along?”

“Don’t go there partner, that’s a real can of worms,” Gary cautioned.

“Ever get the battle rifle you wanted?” Ron asked.

“No. I’ve been thinking about it a lot though,” Gary said, “As much as I want an M1A, I
don’t know if I’d be up to lugging it around if things went to hell and we had to defend
ourselves. I’ve been thinking a lot about maybe getting a Mini-14, though. It isn’t much
of a cartridge, but hell, a rifle and ten mags only weight a fraction of what an M1A
weighs with half as much ammo. I figured on buying a used rifle, they don’t really wear
out if they’re well taken care of, but the only stores that have used Mini-14’s want as
much for a used one as they do for a new one.”

“I think that’s just a California problem Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “We really have to give
some serious thought to moving out of California.”

“That’s all I ever think about Ronald,” Gary admitted, “But, Sharon doesn’t want to move
back to Iowa because of the weather and doesn’t want to move anywhere that she can’t
have access to 50 fabric stores and a quilting circle. Besides, all 3 of her grandchildren
are in Palmdale. I’d just like to get a doublewide somewhere out in the middle of the
boonies where I didn’t have to worry about mowing lawns or any of the BS.”

“Then you have the problem of getting water and fuel and phone and electricity,” Ron
laughed.

“True, it would have to be somewhere that I could get DSL access,” Gary smiled. “But

2
hell, we could put in solar panel or that thin-film roofing I always talk about in my stories
and adapt the water heater for solar water heating. Should have started the whole pro-
cess back in 1992 when I quit my job. Still had all of my guns back then, too; and a
generator and radios.”

“We’re here,” Ron announced, “Let’s go in and see what she has.”

This particular gun store was an interesting place. It seemed that someone was always
in the store selling a gun and 3-4 people were there looking at it even before she bought
it. Few used guns lasted more than a few days. On this particular day, a guy was trying
to sell the store a tricked out Mini-14. It had a Butler Creek folding stock, aftermarket
flashhider and he had several 30-round magazines. The storeowner was trying to ex-
plain to the guy that she couldn’t take the magazines, they were illegal in California, and
that she’d have to replace the stock on the rifle before she could sell it. Those folding
stocks were now illegal. The flashhider had to go, too. The best she could offer was
$250.00. Gary watched the process and the guy was about to give in and sell the store
the rifle, sans magazines for the $250.00.

Gary leaned over to the guy and said, “I’ll give you $400.00 cash money plus $10
apiece for the magazines.”

The man looked at Gary, sizing him up. “I’ve changed my mind,” he said to the store-
owner and indicated with a nod of his head for Gary to join him in the parking lot.

“You on the up and up?” the man asked.

“Yes. You can ask inside,” Gary said, “I bought a handgun a while back, so they ran a
background check on me, if that’s what you’re worried about. Where did you get the ri-
fle?”

“I bought it in Lancaster from Jack First’s gun store,” the man said, “Some guy had just
been in and sold off part of his gun collection.”

“How long ago was that?” Gary asked.

“Oh, maybe 1993,” the man said.

Gary was fairly certain of the man’s answer. There was something awfully familiar about
the rifle and he’d sold both of his Mini-14’s to Jack First back in 1993. He’d picked up
the stock and flashhider in Phoenix and what were the chances that someone would
have tricked out a Mini-14 just the way he had.

“Well, is $400 for the rifle and $100 for the magazines enough?” Gary asked.

3
“Cash?” the man asked.

“If you want to follow me to the bank, yes,” Gary replied.

“You have a deal,” the man answered.

“Let me get Ron to drive me to the Wells Fargo branch on 10th St. east,” Gary said.
“You can follow us over.”

Twenty minutes later the rifle, 10 magazines and 3 M-16 canvas pouches were safely
tucked away in Ron’s trunk and the man had the money in his pocket.

“Why did you buy that particular rifle?” Ron asked.

“Do you remember the tricked out Mini-14 I used to own?” Gary asked.

“Vaguely,” Ron replied.

“Well, I could be wrong,” Gary said, “But I suspect that’s my rifle.”

“Really?” Ron said, “What’s the chances of that happening?”

“A zillion to one,” Gary said, “But we’ll know as soon as we get the rifle back to the
house and dismantle it. I scratched it one time by accident when I was cleaning it. The
scratch is on the trigger housing group.”

The scratch was still there, but apparently the previous owner had tried to re-blue it.
Gary had his assault rifle back in his possession. When Sharon saw the gun, she al-
most went through the roof. What the hell was Gary doing buying a rifle that was 3 ways
illegal in California, she wanted to know. Gary pointed out that this was the very rifle
he’d converted into a full-blown assault rifle 12 years before. From the look on Gary’s
face, Sharon could see that she’d better drop the subject; she hadn’t seen that gleam in
years.

Gary scrounged around in the garage looking for the box with all of his gun stuff. He still
had the cleaning kit and the adapter that allowed him to load the Mini-14 magazines
from stripper clips somewhere. The garage was a disaster. He’d moved back home and
before he could get all of his boxes unpacked, Amy and DeWayne had moved back in.
He had been trying to get the garage cleaned for about 4 years now, but Amy and De-
Wayne refused to pick up their possessions. About 20 boxes later, Gary finally found
the blue plastic box containing his gun supplies. As he went through the box, he real-
ized that all he had to do was replace his guns; he already had most of the accessories.

First things first, however; Gary didn’t have any ammo for the rifle and it wasn’t much

4
good without ammo. He got on the phone and called all of the gun stores in the Ante-
lope Valley, looking for the best case-price on 5.56×45 ammo. Why wasn’t he surprised
when it turned out to be the store where Ron bought all of his guns? She had several
cases of the government 5.56×45mm surplus ammo and it was cheaper than Am-
moman, even after tax. As far as Gary was concerned, it was 1 down and 3 to go. He
still wanted a Remington 12-gauge with a 20” barrel and magazine extension, a .22 rifle
and an M1911.

Big 5 Sporting Goods always seemed to have a shotgun on special, usually a Mossberg
500, a Winchester Defender or a Remington 870, all with magazine extensions. Gary
didn’t much care for the Mossberg and the Winchester was usually only $10 less than
the Remington, so he decided to watch the sales and buy the 870 the next time it went
on sale. He almost got caught flatfooted; the next time the Remington’s went on sale, he
was between disability checks. He never knew when the checks would come in; it
ranged from the 22nd of the month to the 28th. The sale ended the 26th and Gary was
going to float a check if necessary to buy the gun. But in far off Washington, someone
must have known Gary’s plight, the money was in his account on the 26th. For reasons
known only to God, he didn’t buy the 870, and on the way home, he stopped by the gun
store and had her order a case of the 15-pellet, 3” 00 buckshot and a Mossberg 590A1;
2 down and 2 to go.

When it came to .22 rifles, Gary had a special place in his heart for the Winchester
9422. When he’d ordered the shotgun shells, she’d quoted him a price of $400 for the
9422 Legacy model. Although he’d never owned the Legacy, he was particularly at-
tracted to the rifle because of the longer barrel. “Soon,” he told himself. The problem al-
ways seemed to be that ‘Soon’ never came. Unless he forced the issue, he never would
have the .22 and he’d vowed to buy the .22 before he looked for a used M1911. So, the
next month when his disability check came in, Gary got Ron to drive him to the gun
store and he bought the 9422. They’d just have to eat a lot of chicken for the next
month, he guessed, 3 down and 1 to go.

Two months later, the trust made an unusually large deposit in his Iowa account and
Gary was off and running. He manipulated acquiring a Taurus PT1911 with 5 additional
magazines to the two it came with. His arsenal was about complete. Now, he could start
saving for the main battle rifle. At $1,300 it cost one hell of a lot more than any of his
other guns, but he wanted it just to round out his arsenal. The situation had gotten
steadily worse in Iraq ever since they’d turned over power to the Iraqis. “One of these
days,” he told himself, “Those terrorists are going to hit this country again and we’re go-
ing to be up crap creek without a paddle.”

5
 Preparations – Chapter 2 – Electricity

Ron and Linda invited Gary and Sharon and Clarence and Lucy over for a Labor Day
barbeque. Ron wanted Gary and Clarence to see his gunroom. He’d acquired so many
guns that he’d cleaned out the shed in his back yard, installed two gun safes and con-
verted the 8’x12’ shed into a gun room. Ron had been buying off and on and had more
guns than Gary had ever owned at one time. At the moment, he had 26, which included
8 rifles and 18 handguns.

“Tell me something Ron,” Gary asked, “Why so many guns? Why haven’t you bought a
generator or put in an alternative electrical source?”

“No reason,” Ron replied, “I guess I just got in a rut. Why do you ask?”

“I’ve been checking on solar panels,” Gary explained. “I found a company that makes a
panel 16” wide by 18’ long. I did some calculations and I can put 50 of the panels on my
roof. They come on a framework about 16” wide, so I can mount them right over the
shingles on the roof.”

“How much would that system cost you?” Ron asked.

“A lot,” Gary replied.

“That doesn’t sound like such a hot deal,” Clarence observed. “In the long run, do you
save any money?”

“If I didn’t have to finance the purchase, yes, a lot,” Gary said, “But financing the pur-
chase with a 6% home equity loan, the net cost is about $162 a month. On the other
hand, with enough batteries, I can store enough electricity to keep me going for quite a
while.”

“You’re not counting in your air conditioner, right?” Ron asked.

“Wrong,” Gary said, “Even with the air on, I’d be producing more electricity than I used
most of the time.”

“How much electricity would that system generate?” Clarence asked.

“That depends on how many panels I put in,” Gary said. “I used their calculator and dis-
covered that if I put panels on my roof, I could generate over 100% of my electrical
needs.”

“So, what are you going to do?” Clarence asked.

“Simple, I’m going to refinance the house and put in 50 300-watt panels,” Gary ex-
plained. “I figure I’ll die before the house is paid off and the mortgage insurance will end

6
up paying off the system. I can convert my shed to hold the batteries and run wires
through that pipe under my sidewalk that goes from the shed to the breaker panel.”

“What about a generator?” Ron asked.

“Well, I don’t really think that I’ll need one, but I might put in a 15kw diesel generator an-
yway,” Gary explained. “That will give me 100-amps 100% of the time. Even if the sun
quits shining for several days and Edison goes off line, I’ll have electricity.”

“I think you’re carrying this being prepared way too far,” Ron said.

“Have you read a newspaper lately or looked at CNN?” Gary asked. “Maybe I am, but
there’s going to be a whole bunch of people camping out in my backyard if the Arabs
strike the US and take out the infrastructure.”

“You’re nuts,” Ron laughed.

“Yeah, I am, and I’m only going to charge you $20 a day for a camping spot,” Gary
laughed, “Clarence, you can stay for free.”

“How did you want that steak?” Ron asked, “Raw?”

“Medium, thank you very much,” Gary laughed. “Tell you what, you can rent my genera-
tor for $10 a day, that way I won’t have to put up with your insults.”

Later that night after everyone had gone home, Ron mentioned Gary’s electrical project
to Linda. Maybe, he said, Gary had a good idea, but they were going to move to New
Mexico to live with Robert in a couple of more years so he couldn’t see the wisdom of
putting in electrical panels. On the other hand, a 15kw generator was about $3,000 and
that would give them backup in case the lights went out.

Onan had a 15kw natural gas or LP vapor unit that had a built in transfer switch and
was small enough to sit right next to their pool filter. The unit used a little over 1.2-2.5
gallons of propane an hour, if they had to switch to propane, so a 500 gallon propane
tank, filled to 90% capacity would give them over 8 days of continuous electricity under
the worst of conditions.

Linda told Ron to go ahead and put in the generator, they could always take it with them
when they moved to New Mexico and if something did happen, she didn’t want to have
to depend upon Gary and Sharon.

Gary hadn’t broached the subject with Sharon, he figured she’d have puppies if he
talked about upping the home loan that much to put in the solar panels. But, having
practiced his speech on Ron, he decided that now was as good a time as any.

“I was telling Ron that I’d like to put in solar panels to generate electricity,” Gary said.

7
“What did he say?” Sharon asked.

“Said I was nuts,” Gary admitted.

“How much would it cost and how would we finance it?” Sharon asked.

“Uh,” Gary started out.

“That much huh?” Sharon knew Gary and his hemming and hawing.

“But, we’ll break even in 21 years,” Gary said.

“Why not just a standby generator?” Sharon asked.

“I didn’t think you’d go for it,” Gary said.

“Pretend I might for a minute,” Sharon said, “What would you put in?”

“Well,” Gary said, “I’ve been looking at Generac and Onan. I sort of like the 15kw Resi-
dential Onan unit. We could set it on the patio by the natural gas outlet and put an LP
tank nearby.”

“Why that unit?” Sharon asked.

“It’s rated at 15kw continuous and standby,” Gary said. “That’s 100-amps given our alti-
tude and the sometimes high temperatures, the same as our electrical service.”

“Why not a diesel generator?” Sharon asked.

“No reason really,” Gary said.

“It smells, too,” Sharon said. “If you think we absolutely must have power, get the natu-
ral gas/LP vapor powered generator. But, I agree with Ron, you’re nuts.”

Gary called Ron the next day and said he needed a favor. Could Ron run him up to
Lancaster?

“What do you need to go to Lancaster for?” Ron asked.

“I want to go to the Onan dealer,” Gary explained.

“What for?” Ron asked, “I thought you were going to put in that solar system.”

8
“Sharon nixed the idea,” Gary replied, “She decided that we need to put in a 15kw resi-
dential generator.”

“Diesel?” Ron asked.

“No. Natural gas and LP vapor,” Gary said. “We can set it on the patio where I used to
have the gas grill and hook up to the natural gas right there.”

“What about that diesel generator you were talking about?” Ron asked.

“Sharon can’t stand the smell of diesel fuel,” Gary replied.

“Do you know where the dealer is located?” Ron asked.

“I can look it up on the net and print a map,” Gary offered.

“Being you asked so nice, I’ll pick you up in an hour,” Ron said. “Ciao.”

The dealer said the price of the unit was $3,087 plus tax, FOB his store.

“How much will we save if we buy 2?” Ron asked.

“Nothing,” the salesman replied, “But, if you buy 2, I’ll throw in the delivery.”

“Well then, make it 2,” Ron said.

“What’s up Ronald?” Gary asked, “I thought you weren’t into this preparedness thing.”

“I can’t see putting in solar panels,” Ron replied, “But Lyn and I talked it over and we’re
going to put in a 15kw unit. Now, do you have any ideas on backup propane, or should I
use my contacts at AmeriGas to get us each a tank?”

“You’re way ahead of me on that one Chief,” Gary said, “How much is a tank going to
cost us?”

“Well, it depends on the shape, believe it or not, but in the neighborhood of $1,350 for a
500 gallon tank,” Ron said.

“How long will that last?” Gary asked.

“At full load, the generator uses 2.4 gallons of propane per hour,” Ron said. “You should
only put 450 gallons in the tanks, so say about 207 hours at full load. But, you won’t run
full load all of the time, so depending on the season, anywhere from 8 days to 2 weeks.”

“That isn’t very long,” Gary said.

9
“True, but if you don’t run it 24/7,” Ron explained, “You’ll get a month or more electrici-
ty.”

“Maybe I should put in a 1,000-gallon tank,” Gary said.

“No, if you want 1,000-gallons, put in more 500 gallon tanks,” Ron said, “I checked the
prices; you can put in 3 500-gallon tanks for less than the cost of a single 1,000-gallon
tank.”

“Where are we going to get the tanks?” Gary asked.

“From Hanson Tank in LA, via AmeriGas,” Ron answered, “They only sell to licensed
propane professionals and I don’t have a license anymore. You realize that you may not
be able to put in 3 tanks in your backyard, don’t you?”

“Why not, it’s my backyard,” Gary said.

“Yeah, partner, but we live in the city and there are a ton of distance restrictions,” Ron
explained. “We might be better off to just rent the tanks from AmeriGas. Look, since I’m
going to rent my tank anyway, let me be the guinea pig. You can decide after I get mine
installed. In the meantime, you can run your system off those 2 5-gallon bottles you
have for your grill.”

The only thing Gary could find on the Internet was some vague references to distances
from buildings and property lines. California seemed to exempt a single tank from in-
spection, if he read it right. Used tanks for sale on the net seemed to run in two sizes,
too big and too small. He calculated that 30 days times 24 hours times 2.4 gallons per
hour and he’d need 1,800 gallons of propane for 30 days for the generator, at full pow-
er. And, according to one website, he could run his whole house on 200 gallons of pro-
pane for the entire winter. He said screw it and bought a used recertified 2,200-gallon
tank. Then, he bought a new set of jets for his furnace, dryer, stove and hot water heat-
er. He figured that his neighbor Dick could help him change the jets in a pinch; Dick did
work for Southern California Gas Company after all.

Buying the generator and tank put Gary and Sharon in a terrible bind until the next in-
come came in on his trust fund, but they managed. Every extra bit of money they
squeezed out each month went for propane to fill the tank. At least the crap hadn’t hit
the fan, yet. Maybe he’d be ready before the Arabs, and maybe not, but it wouldn’t be
for the lack of trying. Ron and Linda rented a 500-gallon tank from AmeriGas, but they
weren’t planning on running their generator full time. Only time would tell who made the
better decision. Gary had guns and ammo, electricity and gas. All he needed now was
the M1A, food and water, first aid equipment and extra drugs plus a whole lot of luck.

10
 Preparations – Chapter 3 – Food and Water

It was going to take a while to get even and a little money ahead, so Gary had plenty of
time to shop for the food. He consulted Sharon and discussed whether to get the bulk
foods from Walton Feed or the Mountain House prepared meals from Nitro-pak. She
thought about it and decided that for 2 people, the Mountain House meals might be less
wasteful. That figured, it ran an average of $3.65 per meal for the Ultimate-Pak and
$2.65 per meal for the Platinum Reserve. Gary had eaten his share of freeze-dried food
and it wasn’t all that appetizing to him. The stuff was expensive, too; a 6-month supply
for 2 ran $2,700 for the Platinum Reserve and $3,700 for the Ultimate-Pak.

Walton Feed had a 1-year Deluxe unit for one for only $945. But, you had to have a
grain grinder and a lot of extras that weren’t included. Maybe a compromise was in or-
der. He could get one of the Ultimate-Paks and a 1-year Walton Feed Deluxe unit. It all
depended on how the money came in which he bought first. It made more sense to him
buy the fancy foods first, and buy the less expensive foods second, but he’d just have to
see.

Another placed called Survival Unlimited had the same foods as Nitro-pak for a lot less
money. Apparently, it paid to shop around some. That $2,700 package ran $2,300 and
the $3,700 package just $3,154. Gary figured that there must be one hell of a markup
on the food. He decided to order the 4-meal sample pak to see if this was food they
would be able to eat for 6 months on a steady diet. It was a lot easier to throw away
$13.00 worth of food than several thousand dollars worth. Maybe he should try the Al-
pineAire foods too; they seemed to be a little more expensive than the Mountain House
brand.

As far as water went, they used to keep 30 5-gallon bottles of Arrowhead drinking water
in the garage, but gave that up when Gary’s father made a stink about using a reverse
osmosis filter instead. Neither solution satisfied Gary, the Arrowhead water was just too
expensive and using the reverse osmosis unit didn’t give him any backup. He looked on
the net for water tanks and found that American Tank Company’s 2,500-gallon poly wa-
ter tank had the lowest cost per gallon at 38 cents per gallon. That still wasn’t a lot of
water, but if he replaced his 3-gallons-per-flush toilets with the 1.6-gallons-per-flush toi-
lets, it would really increase his water supply. Of course, if the water went out, he’d have
no water pressure so he called his buddy Fleataxi and asked him what to do about that.
Fleataxi told him to get an RV water pump; it was as simple as that.

“Maybe I’m overreacting,” Gary thought one evening when the prospects of getting pre-
pared began to overwhelm him. One look at CNN on the web took care of his concerns
in a big hurry. Fleataxi’s TEOTWAWKI II might just be right; it sure as hell looked like
the end of the world was just around the corner. When the US turned power over to the
Iraqi interim government, unannounced, nothing really changed. The insurgents clearly
had a different agenda than getting control of their country back. They wanted all of the
foreigners out and, most likely, a Muslim state like Iran. But Bush had managed to get
NATO’s support, more or less, and nothing really changed.

11
°

The sample meals came and they gave them a try. This stuff was gourmet fare accord-
ing to the ads on the websites, but Gary didn’t think any gourmet would eat the stuff,
even if he, or she, were starving to death. Still, beans and rice could get old quick. And
in the middle of Palmdale, the only wild animals to hunt were the occasional stray dog
or cat. Sharon didn’t see a dime’s worth of difference between the Mountain House
samples and the AlpineAire samples, so Gary figured he’d better save the few dollars
and get the Mountain House food, when they had the money.

This living from hand to mouth crap was getting old, too. But, how else were they going
to get prepared for whatever was coming on what amounted to a fixed income? That
forced the decision for Gary as far as the food went; like it or not, he started with the
Walton Feed package. When he finally made the purchase and it arrived, he stood look-
ing at the 9 pails and 13 boxes. This pile of food was supposed to feed 1 person for a
full year? He still had to go to Costco and buy oil and sugar, too. Then he had to buy
that grain mill or the pails of wheat wouldn’t do them a bit of good.

He’d bought one new toilet at Home Depot and got a friend to help him install it. He fig-
ured he was ahead of the game because he’d thought to buy a new wax seal for the
stool, but the water line was too short and he had to go back to Home Depot a second
time. The second toilet would just have to wait until he had the water situation resolved
and the rest of the food laid in. And, where there’s a toilet, there’s toilet paper (hopeful-
ly). He had Sharon buying 2 of the 30-double roll packages of Charmin once a month on
her trip to Costco for the past several months.

The plastic water tank fit on the front patio easily, making connection to the city water a
no-brainer. But, it sure made the house look ugly. Gary pulled out the white picket fence
and replaced it with lathe lattice and painted it white. His neighbors were already giving
him strange looks over the LP tank that they’d had to use a crane to lift over the house
into the backyard. The tank had ended up sitting right in the middle of the lawn to con-
form to all of the setoff distances required. To get the gas from the tank to the generator
had been a challenge, too. They’d cut a square hole in the slab next to the where the
generator sat and forced a black iron pipe under the 15’ of slab and plumbed it to the
tank. The only way AmeriGas’s fill truck hose would reach was if the driver pulled the
truck into the drive. Gary and Sharon weren’t making great strides on getting that pro-
pane tank filled either, but at 100 and 200-gallons a month, they were getting ahead of
the curve, albeit slowly.

“Hello?” Linda answered the phone.

“Hi Linda, Gary, is Ron free to come to the phone?” Gary asked.

12
“I’ll get him,” she replied.

“What’s up?” Ron asked when he came on the phone.

“I was wondering how you were doing building up your food supplies,” Gary asked.

“We’re trying Gar-Bear, but Kevin eats like a horse,” Ron replied.

“Did you ever give any thought to buying some of those freeze dried foods?” Gary
asked.

“They taste like crap and cost more than steak,” Ron laughed.

“I got some sample meals for AlpineAire and Mountain House,” Gary said. “They’re tol-
erable, I guess. But you’re right, they sure are expensive; so, I bought the one-year food
deal from Walton Feed. You have to grind the wheat, but it’s a lot cheaper, even after
you buy a grain mill.”

“Did you buy any of the freeze dried stuff yet?” Ron asked.

“Not hardly,” Gary admitted, “I’d have to float a bank loan. Anyway, the reason I called
was to tell you that we got the water tank in.”

“What water tank?” Ron asked.

“That’s right, I guess I didn’t tell you,” Gary said. “I put a 2,500-gallon plastic water tank
on the front patio.”

“I’ll bet your neighbors love that,” Ron laughed.

“Took down the picket fence and replaced it with lattice,” Gary explained. “It’s not all that
noticeable from the street now.”

“I’ll be over to look at it, give me a few minutes,” Ron replied.

A while later…

“Well, you can still see the tank from the street Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “It’s a shame you
can’t plant some ivy or something and have it grow up the lattice.”

“You know, I’ve been thinking about that,” Gary said, “What would you think of my put-
ting in some plastic ivy?”

“Sounds like a lot of work to me,” Ron shook his head.

“But, like you say, you can still see the tank from the street,” Gary replied.

13
“Your neighbors would still know you have the tank,” Ron continued.

“True, but that’s one of the things I like about California,” Gary said, “Nobody really
neighbors much and with the turnover in this tract, in a couple of years, no one will even
remember the tank.”

“Maybe,” Ron replied.

“Say, can Linda and you come over for a barbeque on Sunday?” Gary asked. “I’m going
to invite Clarence and Lucy, too.”

“Steaks?” Ron asked.

“Hamburgers and hot dogs,” Gary laughed, “We won’t be eating any steaks until the
preparations are done.”

When he got home, Ron brought up Gary’s new water tank to Linda. Their water turnoff
valve was in the back yard, so he wouldn’t have to hide a water tank. What did she
think, should they put in a water tank? They were plastic, he pointed out, and they could
move it to New Mexico, too. Linda checked her checkbook and told him to go ahead,
but he’d have to do the plumbing himself. Ron didn’t mention the RV water pump; it was
inexpensive enough he could sneak that through on the credit card.

“Clarence, how have you been?” Gary asked.

“Getting by Gary, how are you?” Clarence answered.

“Been real busy since Labor Day getting our preparations around,” Gary said.

“Did you put in those solar panels?” Clarence asked.

“No. Had to settle for a generator,” Gary answered. “Anyway, the reason I called was to
invite Lucy and you to a barbeque on Sunday. Can you make it?”

“Sure, what time,” Clarence responded.

“Make it around 2,” Gary said.

“See you then,” Clarence said and hung up.

“Are they coming?” Sharon asked.

14
“Yes, around 2 on Sunday,” Gary replied. “Say, if I wanted to buy a bunch of fake Ivy,
where would I look?”

“Michael’s in Lancaster, why?” Sharon asked.

“You can still see the water tank from the street,” Gary said, “I thought maybe we could
weave in some plastic ivy to hide it.”

Sharon NEVER passed up an opportunity to go shopping. She asked if there was any-
thing else he needed while she was out and when he said no, left for Lancaster. It
should have taken an hour or two tops, but Sharon was gone 5. She came home with a
fake climbing rose, ivy and all sorts of plastic flowers. At least Gary had something to
keep him busy for the rest of the week.

Gary had all of the plants up by Friday, but they looked artificial. He decided it was be-
cause they all ended at the sidewalk, so he dug out an old flower box, stuck the ends of
the plants into the box and filled it with potting soil. That solved the problem, so he dug
the other flower boxes out of the shed and ‘planted’ all of the plastic flowers. By the time
he was done with the project, everything looked right.

They had water now and some food. The only important things they were missing were
their prescription drugs. Gary had started refilling his insulin prescription ahead of time
from when he’d started on insulin. At the moment, he was 6 bottles, 3 months, ahead of
the curve. There were only 2 prescription drugs that he didn’t normally have a 4½ -
month supply of, a diabetes pill and his anti-depressant. He could live without the anti-
depressant, but the diabetes pill was necessary and expensive. Sharon took as many
prescriptions as he did, but was never into saving up extra drugs. He guessed they
would have to bite the bullet and get the doctor to write prescriptions for 90-day supplies
of the drugs they were short of. After that, he could buy some first aid supplies and then
return to buying food.

Gary, Ron and Clarence were sitting on the back patio drinking iced tea and visiting on
Sunday afternoon.

“I didn’t think those plastic plants could be made to look so real,” Ron said.

“They didn’t until I ‘planted’ them,” Gary said. “I guess it’s a good thing we never throw
anything away.”

“You’re turning this place into a fortress,” Clarence observed.

“I still have to buy more food, put in another toilet and fill those prescriptions,” Gary said,
“This getting prepared crap is expensive.”

15
 Preparations – Chapter 4 – Finishing Up

“You lost me on the turn,” Clarence said, “What’s this about toilets?”

“My original toilets took 3-gallons of water per flush,” Gary explained. “I’ve replaced one
of them with the new toilets that only take 1.6-gallons of water per flush. I still have to
replace the other one.”

“I already had the newer toilets,” Ron said, “So I didn’t have to replace mine. It’s a good
thing, too. Our house has a lot more toilets.”

“Did you put in a generator and water tank, too?” Clarence asked Ron.

“Got the generator, but we only have a 500-gallon propane tank Clarence,” Ron said.
“Lyn and I talked it over and we’re going to put in a water tank in the back yard.”

“Then you’re not moving to New Mexico?” Gary asked.

“We’re moving, but we can take everything with us, partner.” Ron replied. “Besides, that
won’t be for a while.”

“Did you ever get yourself a M1A rifle, Gary?” Clarence asked.

“Nope, but when I do, you’ll know I’m ready,” Gary said. “For what an M1A, magazines
and ammo would cost, I can put in a 6-month supply of food for the 2 of us. So, I’ll just
have to settle for the guns I have at the moment.”

“I suppose Lucy and I should put up some extra food,” Clarence commented. “We can’t
afford all of the preparations you guys are making, but I suppose if we brought our own
food, one of you might put us up.”

“Clarence, start with your drugs and then buy food,” Gary suggested. “After that, you
ought to buy a rifle of some kind and maybe a 20” barrel for your 12-gauge.”

“Maybe a rifle,” Clarence conceded, “But I have a hacksaw and file so I won’t need the
extra barrel for the shotgun.”

“But Clarence, that would be illegal,” Ron kidded.

“Yeah, well if it gets to the point that I have to cut off the barrel on my shotgun,” Clar-
ence retorted, “Johnny Law can kiss my butt.”

“Maybe Clarence and Lucy had better stay with Linda and you, Ron,” Gary laughed, “I
don’t want any militant black folks living with me.”

16
Derek had survived Kosovo and was back home in Iowa hoping that George W. didn’t
decide to send his unit to Iraq next. Kosovo had been tough enough, but at least no one
had shot at him. He’d had to dodge a few Molotov Cocktails and had to pull down on a
couple of people, but other than that, his 6-month tour was uneventful. While in Kosovo,
he’d completed BNCOC and was slated for a promotion and his own tank, finally. The
state of Iowa had bought them Abrams tanks, but was too cheap to buy anything but the
beat-up and worn-out M1A1’s. His unit had been slowly refitting the tanks while he was
in Kosovo, but as far as he knew, there were no plans to upgrade the M1A1’s to
M1A2’s, let alone the M1A2SEP.

“Derek, if I sent you the money,” Gary asked on the phone, “Would you be willing to buy
me an M1A and some magazines?”

“You can buy the M1A in California,” Derek replied, “Why would you want me to buy it?”

“California legal means it doesn’t have the standard flashhider,” Gary said, “And you’d
have to buy me the magazines anyway.”

“How about I just buy you the flashhider and magazines?” Derek asked. “The Army sort
of keeps track of what guns we buy.”

“Well, if you do that, you’ll have to buy me the alignment tool and everything,” Gary ob-
served.

“Yeah, but then you can convert as many guns as you want to standard configuration,”
Derek replied.

“Fair enough, but buy me the flashhiders with the bayonet lug, would you?” Gary said.

“If the state of California catches up with you, you’re going to jail,” Derek responded.

“Do you remember that tricked out Mini-14 I had at one time?” Gary asked.

“Yeah, it’s a good thing you don’t have it anymore,” Derek said, “It even violates federal
law.”

“I bought it back,” Gary said, “Still in the configuration it was in when I sold it.”

“When are visiting hours?” Derek laughed.

“I’ll send you the money for a flashhider, the alignment tools and 9 magazines,” Gary
said, “That way, when I can afford the rifle, I’ll have all of the parts.”

17
It was getting to be problematic in Gary’s mind whether or not he’d finish his prepara-
tions in time. The news didn’t look all that good and he still had a lot to get done. Fortu-
nately the trust fund made a healthy year-end distribution and he was able to get the
prescriptions filled and put in the second toilet. He considered his options and decided
to buy the M1A and more food from Walton Feed. He could either have the rifle and
beans or the fancy food; he opted for the former. Darn, that rifle was heavy, though;
maybe he should make Sharon carry the M1A and 8 mags and he’d take the Mini-14.

At the barbeque, the three men had discussed possible terrorist strikes. Gary thought
that the pipeline system was the logical target. There were over 200,000 miles of crude
and refined petroleum product pipeline in the US. The government must have thought
so too because they had taken the maps of the refinery and pipeline locations off their
website in 2002. The US consumed something like 700 million gallons of fuel a day. It
wouldn’t take too many carefully placed explosives to bring the country to its knees, es-
pecially during the winter months when the demands for natural gas and fuel oil were
high. Clarence and Ron seemed to think that the terrorists had some of those suppos-
edly missing Russian nukes and they would try to sneak some into the country.

“I’ll tell you two something,” Gary had said, “Even as porous as our borders are it would
probably still be tough to get a nuke into the country. On the other hand, dynamite is
easy to steal and detonators and such aren’t all that hard to come by. Hell, in some
states you can walk in off the street, present a driver’s license and buy the explosives.
Why would the ragheads want to risk getting caught with a nuke when there are so
many easier ways to screw up the country? Dynamite a few pipelines and some electri-
cal substations and you’d screw us up good. Do it in winter and a lot of people would be
in trouble.”

“I don’t know Gary,” Clarence said, “Customs only inspects about 2% of the cargo pass-
ing through our ports. It wouldn’t be all that hard to sneak in a nuke. There must be
hundreds of sleepers living in this country. What if they did everything all at once? I
mean can you imagine what it would be like if our fuel supplies were interrupted, the
electricity went down and 3 or 4 major cities got nuked? It would almost bring down the
government.”

“I hadn’t thought of it that way guys,” Ron said, “I guess I’m glad Lyn and I made some
preparations.”

“You need a bigger propane tank Ronald and some food,” Gary observed. “Clarence,
you’re way behind the curve on this one, you better get busy making preparations. You
can drag your butt over here as long as I don’t have to eat greens and chitterlings.”

“You’re a racist,” Clarence laughed.

“Only since I found out what chitterlings were,” Gary laughed back.

18
Gary deemed himself as prepared as he was going to get. Maybe if some more money
came in, he could spring for the Mountain House foods, but they could get by with what
they had. He’d solved the problem with the garage. When Amy refused to pick up her
things, he’d started throwing them away. There would have been room to park the car in
the garage if it hadn’t been so filled with emergency supplies. And to tell the truth, he
wasn’t as nearly concerned over the terrorists; it was his neighbors who bothered him.
Most of them were ill prepared to deal with a real problem in the country. In the week
between Christmas and New Year’s when they’d gone to Costco, he bought 300# of
pinto beans and 300# of rice. Sharon had a fit, but Gary pointed out that when their
neighbors came looking for food, they could give them beans and rice and wouldn’t
have to share their other rations. Sharon thought about it a minute and made Gary buy
400# of flour and 100# of sugar.

Gary had bought first aid supplies from Nitro-pak. His purchases included the EMT
Medic Rescue Pak, the Deluxe Suture and Syringe Kit, several kit refills and extra su-
tures. He’d also loaded up on MagLites and batteries at Costco. He wasn’t expecting to
have to fight World War III in his front yard, so he limited his ammunition purchases to 2
cases per weapon, except for the .22LR. He had 10 bricks of those; they might end up
being currency. He didn’t particularly worry about gasoline, he kept the car’s tank full
and had 8 5-gallon cans of stabilized unleaded. If they did have to bug out, they could
go a long ways on 40 gallons of gas.

Now all they had to do was keep the supplies filled in as they used them. There was
maybe one exception to that; Gary wanted enough tp on hand for a year. It’s funny what
became important to a person when they got older. Good old diabetic Gary wanted 4
things above all and three of them weren’t even good for him. They were coke, candy
bars, cigarettes and tp. Cigarettes had been tough to stockpile. At $30 a carton at Cost-
co, it was easy to spend lots of money quick when you got to the cigarette section. Gary
solved that one by buying 6 cartons a month. When he wasn’t sitting at his computer
writing another of those yarns of his, he smoked about a pack a day. However, when he
was engrossed in a story, they burned up in the ashtray and he easily went through 2
packs or more a day. He hadn’t realized what an expensive habit writing fiction was.

Gary probably would have had his M1A a whole lot sooner if Missy hadn’t gotten sick.
She had pancreatitis and thyroid problems and God knew what else. And, of course,
when your pet got sick you just had to rush them to the vet. At least you did when she
was a $500 purebred. No wonder they never got ahead, they kept seeing things on TV
that they just ‘had to have’ and when they got more than $300 in the bank the dog or
one of the cats got sick. It was worse than having children. Or, maybe, it was just like
having children. (Ron agrees completely.)

Most books and manuals on preparedness advise a person to have some cash on hand
to get them through the tough spots. Between his two checking accounts, Gary had

19
maybe $100. It was a great idea if you could do it, but wasn’t as if Gary planned to run
to Albertson’s or Costco if TSHTF. He contented himself to watching TV, especially the
news. He wanted to know when the balloon went up. Ron called and said he’d ordered
some food from Walton Feed, enough for 4 people for 6 months. Then Clarence called
and asked Gary how much room he had in his freezer for the chitterlings.

At least that meant that if something happened, they’d all be ready to some extent. Ron
told Gary that he had AmeriGas install a second 500-gallon propane tank, and that ra-
ther than rent, he had purchased the tank he had and the additional used tank. Gary
was a little concerned about Ron’s state of preparedness because Ronald was a
cheapskate when it came to ammo. It was too expensive, Ron complained and Gary
told him that if he bought sensible calibers instead of those exotic things like .38-40 that
it wouldn’t cost him an arm and a leg for 50 rounds. What was Ron going to do when
the crap hit the fan anyway? Maybe he should consider getting something a little more
common like a .45 Colt.

Gary hadn’t been able to buy a Colt SAA or a Winchester in matching caliber, they just
cost too much and he had enough guns anyway. Well, if nothing happened, he’d have
money for the guns come summer, but somehow, he had a sinking feeling that he
wasn’t about to ever see those guns. On the days when nobody was raising hell in Iraq,
it seemed that the Israelis attacked the Palestinians or the other way around.

He’d like just one night where the media wasn’t talking about attacks or the Michael
Jackson trial or the hung jury in the Laci Peterson murder trial. It wasn’t surprising that
the jury had hung, between ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, FOX and MSNBC, there were at
least 7 different explanations about what really happened and whether Scott had done it
or not. How the hell could anyone get a fair trial anymore with the media pouncing on
the cases? And, who really gave a crap whether Martha did it or not? She’d lost her
empire, did it really matter if she went to jail for a few months?

Gary was so convinced that the terrorists were going to strike the pipelines that he
spent hours on the net trying to get maps of where all the pipelines were. He did find out
that California only produced 15% of the natural gas it used and the remaining 85% was
supplied by pipeline from as far away as Canada. He also found out that the Office of
the State Fire Marshal (SFM) regulated the safety of approximately 5,500 miles of intra-
state hazardous liquid transportation pipelines and acted as an agent of the Federal Of-
fice of Pipeline Safety concerning the inspection of more than 2,000 miles of interstate
pipelines. But, the harder he looked, the less he learned; the feds had clamped down on
pipeline information very tightly. He was certain of one thing. Based on one map he’d
run across, terrorists could knock out that 85% of the natural gas infrastructure with only
4 bombs and that would cut off fuel to one-tenth of the nation’s population. And, if Clar-
ence were right, it would be a whole lot worse if an attack were nationwide and included
nukes.

20
 Preparations – Chapter 5 – Happy Valentine’s Day

Sharon’s birthday is February 12th. That made Valentine’s Day a pretty pricey proposi-
tion. Back when they’d been married the first time, Gary sometimes cheated a little and
rolled her birthday, Valentine’s and their anniversary into one large gift. Any more, he
had to tone it back a bit because February to October was too long of a stretch. The
trust came though handsomely in February and Gary headed for the gun store. They
had a Winchester in .45 Colt and a Ruger Vaquero in .45 Colt in stock. They didn’t have
any western rigs, but they had a cartridge belt in his waist size with .45 cal loops and a
holster that would work. He filled out the forms and plunked down the money. Then he
got Sharon to take him to the Mall and asked her to please pick out her own presents.
He told her that it might not be so romantic, but he just wanted her to have something
she really wanted and not to have to exchange it. Besides, he pointed out, he didn’t
drive and if she wanted her presents, they’d better do it now.

Seeing how Gary had just dropped a grand at the gun store, Sharon led Gary over to
Bolts in a Bathtub.

“There you go dear,” Sharon said, “That’s what I really want for my birthday and Valen-
tine’s day.”

“What is that besides $1,300?” Gary asked.

“It’s a cutting table,” she smiled, “I told you about it.”

What could he say? How about, ‘how much is that with tax?’ or ‘do you deliver?’ The
next time he wanted to buy a gun or two, Gary figured he’d be better off having Ron
drive him. He sort of got even; he’d forgotten to buy ammo for his new guns. At $16.50
a box and 10 boxes to the case, the 2 cases of .45 Colt ammo about evened things up.
They told him that he could pick up his rifle on the 14th and the revolver on the 19th.
Gary positively hated the waiting periods. And why was the waiting period for a handgun
5 days longer than for a long gun? Maybe a handgun could kill you deader?

In the meantime, they had to rearrange Sharon’s sewing room to make space for the
new cutting table. Gary decided to move the old table to the garage and stand it over
some boxes. Then, he stacked boxes on top of the table, overall losing very little space.
The garage looked like it had before he’d thrown Amy’s stuff in the trash, except that
everything was neatly arranged. Ron had commented how nice it was to walk in a
straight line in the garage. Gary huffed that there would be a lot more room if he threw
away Sharon’s 50 cases of romance novels.

Ron and Linda came over for cake and ice cream on Sharon’s birthday. After they had
their cake, Gary took Ron to the office for a smoke. Gary brought up CNN and pointed
to the headlines.

21
“I don’t like the looks of that one bit Ron,” Gary said, “All hell is breaking lose in the Mid-
dle East.”

“Are they going to send Derek over there?” Ron asked.

“He’s not sure,” Gary replied, “But I’d bet dollars to donuts that they will. It would proba-
bly be different if the election had gone the other way, but who knows?”

“Given the ways the polls looked, that was quite a surprise wasn’t it?” Ron remarked.

“I didn’t make any difference who won Ron.” Gary said, “They were both talking about
bringing the troops home, just at different times.”

“We’d better get home Gar-Bear, they’re predicting snow tonight,” Ron said.

“Is it going to get this far down?” Gary asked.

“They said maybe 2,800 feet, but they’re never right, so I don’t want to take a chance,”
Ron replied.

Ron was right and the weather forecasters were wrong. The Antelope Valley got 3” of
snow. There was still snow on the ground on Valentine’s Day when Gary got Ron to
take him to pick up his Winchester. They got to the gun store about 9:15 and it looked
like she was locking up.

“Hey wait a minute,” Gary yelled, “I’m here to pick up my rifle.”

She unlocked the door. “We have to hurry, I’m closing up,” the owner said.

“Why?” Ron asked.

“You haven’t heard?” she asked. “Someone blew up the natural gas pipelines coming
into California around 15 minutes ago.”

“Really?” Ron said. “You were right Gar-Bear, they went for the pipelines.”

“I just hope they stop there,” Gary said, “I have a Winchester to pick up. The name is
Gary Olsen.”

She went into the back room and returned a few minutes later. “Here, I’m not going to
reopen and you have this Ruger on hold until the 19th,” she said, “You’d better take it
now. Do you guys need any ammo? It’s cash only.”

“I’ll pass,” Gary said.

22
“Give me 4 bricks of .22LR,” Ron said, “That’s all the cash I have.”

They quickly finished their business and headed back to Gary’s. The gal had the closed
sign up and the door locked before they’d even gotten in Ron’s car.

“I wouldn’t have minded being wrong, you know,” Gary said. “Do you know how to
change the jets in my furnace, stove, dryer and hot water heater?”

“I’ll drop you off and go home and check on Lyn, Gar-Bear,” Ron said. I’ll switch my jets
and then we’ll both come over to your house and I’ll do yours. Shut off the natural gas
feed, but don’t turn on the propane feed until I get over there, ok?”

“Sure thing Ron,” Gary said, “I sure hope the TV stations are operating.”

Apparently Adelphia had backup power; some of the channels were on the air. Gary
turned on CNN and sat down to watch the news and find out just what was going on.
Talk about a mess; the announcers were talking over each other trying to report explo-
sions all over the country. There was no word of any nukes going off, but select pipe-
lines and portions of the power grid were down over most of the country. Since some of
the power generation facilities were powered by natural gas, they couldn’t generate
electricity and those that could, had nowhere for it to go. There was a serious winter
storm stretching from the Midwest almost to the east coast, too. Then, without explana-
tion, the feed from CNN dropped off the air. Gary turned to FOX news, but they were off
the air too.

CNN had studios in Atlanta and New York. FOX’s principal studio was in New York.
Gary wondered what it meant. Had something happened to New York? Or, Washing-
ton? Or, perhaps Atlanta? As he was soon to learn, the answer was Y-E-S. Those
nukes that Gary said the Arabs could never get past the feds exploded in those three
cities plus Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Adelphia stopped broadcasting so
Gary turned on his radio to KTPI, 103.1 on the FM band. They were broadcasting the
emergency tone. That’s all; no news, just the EAS tone. A couple of minutes of tone
preceded the announcer.

KTPI has just learned that a nuclear explosion has occurred in Los Angeles, the an-
nouncer said.

Gary grabbed the phone to call Ron, but the phone was dead. He went to his office and
looked at his residential gateway that accessed the Internet. There was a red light
where it said ‘Broadband Link’. He checked the second line on the two-line phone on his
desk. It was dead, confirming the light on the router. No TV, no phones and only an ex-
cited radio announcer to feed them news. Gary tried the other FM radio frequencies,
especially the LA stations, but came up blank. On AM, he could get the stations in Lan-
caster, but the Palmdale AM station had switched to Spanish language format years be-
fore.

23
Ron and Linda pulled in and walked to the house.

“Have you had the TV or radio on?” Gary asked.

“No. I switched my jets and came right over,” Ron said, “What’s going on?”

“Nothing much,” Gary shook his head, “Just a nuke in LA. You know, the usual crap.”

“You’re a sick SOB,” Ron said, “What do you mean, ‘the usual crap’?”

“Well, I was watching CNN,” Gary explained, “They were doing a live feed from the
White House. They just plain went off the air. I switched to FOX and they were off the
air. KTPI reported a nuke went off in LA. I’d speculate that one probably went off in both
New York and Atlanta. CNN transmits from Atlanta and FOX from New York.”

“Any other cities get hit?” Ron asked.

“Darned if I know, partner,” Gary said, “I wish I could tell you more.”

“Let me get those jets changed and get the hell back home,” Ron said. “What direction
is the wind out of, do you know?”

“The west, same as always,” Gary said, “Why?”

“I was just wondering if we’d get any fallout from LA,” Ron said, “But if the wind is out of
the due west, we might be okay.”

“Wouldn’t make a hell of a lot of difference anyway, partner,” Gary said, “If the radiation
came our way, we don’t have a basement or storm shelter to crawl into anyway.”

“We could bug out,” Ron said.

“To where?” Gary asked. “Until we know where the nukes were set off, we wouldn’t
know which direction to go. Hell, they could have hit Vegas or Phoenix or San Francisco
or any number of cities.”

“Call me when you find out,” Ron said.

“I can’t. The phones are out,” Gary explained.

“Cells phones, too?” Ron asked.

“I didn’t try; try yours,” Gary suggested.

Linda shook her head indicating that she couldn’t get a dial tone on her cell phone.

24
“If yours is out, mine probably is too,” Gary said.

“It’s a shame that we don’t have any radios,” Ron observed.

“Chris has 3, but I doubt that they would reach from your house to my house,” Gary ob-
served.

“That’s a real fly in the ointment,” Ron said, “We don’t have any cash so we can’t buy
any either.”

“Assuming you could find a store open,” Gary said. “You didn’t happen to swing by Al-
bertson’s did you?”

“No. It’s the other way. Why?” Ron asked.

“I’ll bet all of the grocery stores are mob scenes,” Gary replied, “I’d avoid them if I
could.”

“We’re going straight home partner. What are you going to do?” Ron said.

“Load my guns and pray,” Gary responded. “I don’t have a Geiger counter, I don’t have
a basement if there was radiation and until I know what’s going on, I’m not going any-
where.”

“You have another transistor radio?” Ron asked.

“Take one of the boom boxes sitting by the fireplace,” Gary said, “You do have batteries
don’t you?”

“I have D cells,” Ron said.

“One of the boxes takes D cells and the other C cells, be sure you get the right one,”
Gary suggested.

Clarence and Lucy pulled up, their car fully laden.

“Well, from the radio,” Clarence said, “TSHTF.”

“What have you heard, partner?” Ron asked.

“So far, New York, Washington, Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco and LA have been hit,”
Clarence answered.

“Any other cities?” Gary asked.

“Not that I know of,” Clarence said, “Ain’t that enough?”

25
 Preparations – Chapter 6 – Oops!

Gary thought he was pretty well prepared. In most respects, he was, he had guns and
ammo, food and water and medical supplies. He didn’t have a Geiger counter, a shelter
or any of those Potassium Iodide pills either. The pills were pretty cheap. But, according
to what Gary had read, the danger came from inhaled radiation and he did have a lot of
N-95 masks, to be exact, 5 boxes of 20 each. He decided that the four of them should
wear masks for the next few days. Make that the 8 of them; he saw Amy, DeWayne and
the kids pulling in.

“Gary, I think that I’d better go after Lorrie and the kids,” Sharon said.

“Ok, I wonder if David is ok?” Gary thought aloud.

“I have no idea,” Sharon said, “He has to be at work at 8am in the Valley.”

“Well, at least Chris was on hiatus from the show,” Gary said, “So they’re okay.”

Chris worked on the ET set at the Paramount Studios in downtown Hollywood. If he had
been at work that day, he’d have never made it home. It turned out that David was late
leaving for work because of a party Sunday night. Maybe having a hangover wasn’t too
heavy a price to pay for your life. David was just nearing the Sand Canyon off ramp on
the 14 when the bomb went off. He happened to be looking away from the blast. He had
pulled up the off ramp and headed directly back to Palmdale. He arrived home around
the same time that Sharon arrived to pick up Lorrie. Sharon had them get some chang-
es of clothes and clean out their cupboards. They didn’t have much food on hand, so
that didn’t take too long.

Patti flagged Sharon down when Sharon returned to Moon Shadows. She wanted to
know what Sharon could spare in the food department. She said she’d tried Albertson’s
and Stater Brothers, but the shelves were almost bare by the time she got there. Sharon
and Patti had been good friends for a long time. Back in 1996 when Gary had pulled his
disappearing act, Patti had gotten Sharon through the event. For all practical purposes,
there wasn’t anything that Sharon wouldn’t do for Patti. On the other hand, Patti would
never abuse the friendship. It was a good thing that Gary had bought the extra beans
and rice, there was enough food for everyone for a while.

Gary didn’t seem to mind sharing with Chris and Patti, but he told Chris he sure would
like to use the radios. Chris told Gary sure, that was what they were for; although he
never thought it would be in a situation like this. Chris said the radios were fully charged
and gave Gary a radio and charger for Ron. If it worked, great, Chris said otherwise,
bring it back. Gary explained about the fallout and the risk to the thyroid and gave Chris
a box of the N-95 masks. He suggested that they wear them until someone could figure
out the radiation situation. Chris told Gary that the Sheriff’s Department or the Fire De-

26
partment ought to have radiation detection equipment, why didn’t he run Gary over to
Ron’s and then down to the Sheriff’s Station?

If Chris was willing to go to the Sheriff’s Station, and not at the point of a gun, Gary fig-
ured, he was taking the situation pretty seriously. Patti agreed to wait on the patio with a
radio for 15 minutes. If they didn’t connect by then, the radios wouldn’t reach. It only
took Gary and Chris 5 minutes to get to Ron’s house, but the distance was just too far
for the radios. Motorola said they’d reach a mile or more, but that must have been under
ideal conditions. The next stop was the Sheriff’s Station. When they arrived at the Sub-
station, they kept their masks on. The Deputy behind the counter was a bit surprised,
but he told them that if any radiation were detected, the patrol cars would cover
Palmdale with their loudspeakers. He also confirmed the six cities that had been hit and
that California was completely without electricity.

Palmdale used a gravity feed water system. They would have water until the tanks went
dry and after that only if the City could get electricity to the well pumps. They were now
up to 15 people, Gary and Sharon, Clarence and Lucy, Amy and her 3 and Lorrie and
her 6. There was plenty of food, even including Chris and Patti and the 2 boys, but Gary
figured it wouldn’t be too long before they had to scrounge for a few things. He wanted
some of the 25-watt business radios, hopefully on the same frequency as Chris’s
handhelds. Gary couldn’t remember the frequencies anymore, but the scanners were
set to pick up the radios and it was easy to do a slow count and get the two radio fre-
quencies on the scanners. Besides, Chris probably had the paperwork somewhere.

The news on the radio could only be described as spotty. KTPI was broadcasting mostly
local Palmdale and Tehachapi news. Once an hour, they broadcast about 5 minutes of
national news. Gary was real curious how they managed to get national news, but it re-
ally didn’t amount to that much anyway. This had been some Valentine’s Day. It sort of
gave a whole new meaning to the term ‘St. Valentine’s Day Massacre’. According to the
news, the terrorists had exploded the bombs near City Hall in all of the cities except
Washington. The DC bomb had gone off at the FBI building, which is located about
halfway between the White House and the Capitol. The damage was somewhat limited
due to the small size of the bombs, 1 kiloton. Consider the following article:

LEBED SOLDIERS ON WITH MISSING BOMB CLAIMS

(Moscow Times, Sept 10, 1997) by Richard C. Paddock (LA Times)

Alexander Lebed, the former Russian general and presidential hopeful, has been
broadcasting his claim over the past week that Russia has lost track of 100 nuclear
bombs the size of suitcases.

“A very thorough investigation is necessary,” Lebed reiterated to reporters Monday,

September 8. “The state of nuclear security in Russia poses a danger to the whole
world.”

27
The general’s allegations are roundly denied by Russian officials, who contend that all
of Russia’s nuclear weapons are safely under control.

In his previous post as President Boris Yeltsin’s top security adviser, Lebed might have
been in a position to know about such secrets. But the president fired him nearly a year
ago.

Now Lebed – who negotiated last year’s peace accord with Chechnya – is a political
outsider who is trying to revive his career and build a base for a potential run at the
presidency in the year 2000, when Yeltsin must step down.

“How can a serious politician make such a sensational statement without the checking
of facts first?” said Vladimir Uvatenko, chief spokesman for the Defense Ministry. “This
scandalous statement was clearly made by Alexander Lebed to get the attention of the
press and boost his waning political image and declining popularity.”

Despite the official denials, Lebed is pursuing his allegations undeterred. In an interview
with CBS television’s “60 Minutes” aired Sunday, Lebed said the suitcase bombs were
ideal weapons for terrorists because they could be armed and detonated by a single
person within 30 minutes.

One of the one-kiloton bombs could kill 100,000 people, he said. Of 250 suitcases de-
vices made by the Soviet Union, he said, 100 are unaccounted for.

On Monday, Lebed was quoted by Interfax as saying he had learned of the existence of
the bombs 11 months ago when he was Yeltsin’s security adviser. Since that time, he
said, he has been able to prove to his own satisfaction that the weapons were real.

Lebed said the suitcase bombs were deployed in special brigades in some of the em-
pire’s remote regions. After the break-up of the Soviet state, many of the suitcases van-
ished in what became independent republics, where they could fall into the hands of ter-
rorists, he said.

In Washington, US officials say they have no information that any of Russia’s nuclear
weapons, whatever their size, have been offered for sale on the world’s black markets.

So what was the truth about the missing 100 suitcase nukes? Well, the only thing Gary
was certain of was the 6 of them weren’t missing anymore. There wasn’t much news
about all of the pipeline and electrical substation bombings; they probably weren’t as
interesting as the nukes. The good news, or bad news depending on your political affili-
ations, was that the President and First Lady had been in Philadelphia for something or
other and had been spared the bombing. They’d cranked up Air Force One in a big hur-
ry and moved to Cheyenne Mountain. Congress wasn’t so lucky, but a lot of the Repre-
sentatives and Senators had been somewhere other than the Capitol and had escaped
the carnage. The radio didn’t say which Senators and Representatives had been
spared; with the luck the US was having at the moment, probably all of the liberals!

28
°

For some strange reason no one was very hungry that evening. Gary was content to
drink a Coke and eat an Almond Snickers, screw the blood sugar. He was reconsidering
whom they had to be careful of. He had, for many years, been fearful that a major
earthquake would strike LA and thousands of survivors would come pouring up the 14
and into the Antelope Valley. After the Northridge quake, he’d sort of dismissed the idea
as unlikely.

This was a whole different scenario. It wasn’t just about some broken buildings any-
more; it was about people fleeing from radiation. Whether there was radiation in the San
Fernando Valley or not, was insignificant. What mattered was people’s perception of the
danger. The blast damage was probably limited to downtown and to the south, he spec-
ulated, the mountains would shield the Valley, but only from the blast itself. That mush-
room shaped cloud would get people moving, by car if it worked and on foot if it didn’t.
Probably by car, he decided, a suitcase nuke would have been detonated near ground
level and the mountains would have probably blocked the EMP.

After Ron had left, Gary had done just what he said he was going to do; he loaded all of
the magazines for all of his weapons, 18 rounds in the M1A mags, 27 in the Mini-14
mags and a full 8 in the PT1911 mags. However, because of his neuropathy, he opted
to go with the Ruger and Winchester. What the hell, he used to practice his fast draw
with his Super Blackhawk. He wasn’t particularly fast, but he could hit a man-sized tar-
get out to about 20’, as long as he didn’t try to draw too fast. Didn’t really matter how
fast you could draw if you couldn’t hit what you were shooting at.

Anyway, back to Gary’s concerns about the visitors from the Valley. Now, if the people
were smart, they’d have taken time to get food around and such, but panic always
seemed to outweigh smart, so it was a good bet that they’d show up with nothing more
than the clothes on their backs; and guns, if they had any. People always seemed to
remember their guns, even if they were panicked. Or was that because they were pan-
icked? Whatever, the Antelope Valley was going to have a large influx of people, in his
humble opinion. There weren’t really all that many Deputies assigned to the Antelope
Valley, not when one considered how many people lived in the San Fernando Valley. Of
course a fair share of them would head up the I-5, but when it bogged down with traffic,
they’d probably spill over onto the 14.

“David could you and the boys work out some sort of schedule to stand guard tonight?”
Gary asked Lorrie’s significant other.

“Are you expecting trouble Gary?” David asked.

“Oh, I don’t know, but there are going to be a lot of people pouring out of the Valley,”
Gary said, “So it might be smart to keep an eye out.”

29
“Do you want us armed?” David asked, “The boys haven’t fired that many guns.”

“Well maybe a shotgun,” Gary said, “I think that Chris has one of those air horns. I’ll go
see if I can borrow it.”

“Chris, I’m going to have David and the boys stand guard tonight, can I borrow that air
horn of yours,” Gary asked.

“Sure. Are they going to be on the radio?” Chris asked.

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Gary said, “But keep your radio on channel 1 and if you hear
the air horn, you can call and find out what’s going on.”

“I sort of hate to ask, but do you suppose I could borrow a shotgun or something?” Chris
asked.

“The boys are using mine, but if Clarence will let you use his, sure,” Gary replied, “If not,
do you want the battle rifle or the assault rifle?”

“Anything that will put them down with one shot,” Chris grimaced.

“Ok a shotgun with 00 buck or the M1A,” Gary said, “You want me to bring it back or do
you want to come down and get it?”

“I’ll walk along, you look pretty done in,” Chris said.

“You don’t know the half of it, pal,” Gary laughed. “Come on.”

Clarence was more than willing to let Chris use his shotgun for the night, because he
had his new rifle. Clarence had picked up a Garand and 3 cases of the Korean surplus.
His thumb still showed the purple bruising he’d gotten learning to load the weapon. But,
that wasn’t a lesson you really needed to learn many times. Clarence gave Chris the
gun and a 25 round box of #4 buck. That ought to stop anyone in their tracks he said.
The shotgun was a 590A1 and Chris was familiar with the mechanism. But, working in
Hollywood all of those years, he tended to be a little on the liberal side and didn’t own
any guns. Gary had a sneaking feeling that was about to change abruptly. It was the old
you’re a liberal until you’re mugged bit.

Gary took some time and made sure David and the boys understood the operation of
the 590A1. He also pointed out that they shouldn’t shoot except as a last resort and that
the gun was loaded with 3” magnum 00 buck and that it had hefty recoil.

30
 Preparations – Chapter 7 – Sorting It Out

Their house really wasn’t big enough to handle the 15 people that were there. It was a
3-bedroom house, but one of the bedrooms had been converted to a sewing room and
was wall-to-wall furniture. The master bedroom had a king sized bed and the other bed-
room a twin-sized trundle that made up a king sized bed when setup. Putting people on
the back patio to sleep wasn’t much of an option; the generator was too loud to let any-
one sleep. There were, however, several empty homes in the tract. The house between
Gary and Chris was empty; the young kids who bought it apparently couldn’t afford the
payments and had resold the house. Dan and Dawn had lived in the house on the other
side of Gary and Sharon’s but had sold out after 17 years to take advantage of the high
prices of homes and perhaps because their girls were grown and gone.

It was exactly 10’ between Gary’s utilities and the utilities for the house between his and
Chris’s. Tomorrow, they could run some electricity to the house. David was a locksmith
and he had the door to that home open in the blink of an eye. It was too late in the even-
ing to do more than give Lorrie and David the oil lamps for light and the twin box springs
and mattress in the garage. They would stay in the empty home next door. Gary gave
Clarence and Lucy the master bedroom and put Amy and her brood in the spare bed-
room. He took his pills and insulin, got in his recliner and was asleep in minutes.

David found a small pile of wood in the neighbor’s back yard and built a fire in the fire-
place. He erected the twin bed in the living room near the fireplace for Lorrie. He also
found 3 forgotten cribs in his in-laws garage and set one up for Jeffrey. Gary had
conked out on them after pointing everyone to a spot to spend the night. David and his
boys kept watch of the area from an upstairs bedroom window. He didn’t know how
things were going to work out; all he knew was that he was out of a job, all but broke
and the country was in one hell of a mess. There was no trouble that night.

The smell of coffee brewing woke Gary the next morning. He was his usual groggy self
until he had some coffee and a couple of cigarettes. The good news was that the Xanax
he took let him sleep, regardless; the bad news was that it took him an hour to wake up
each morning. He’d gone for a year of nearly sleepless nights trying to get off the pill,
but had finally gotten the doctor to prescribe 0.5 mg TID. Since he only took one pill a
day, and he got 90 pills at a time, he had enough Xanax built up to last him 3 years. An-
yway, after he had some caffeine and nicotine he was starting to come alive.

“Gary, it don’t seem right putting you and Sharon out of your bed,” Clarence said.

“If we could get a truck, we could move your possessions to Dan and Dawn’s house,”
Gary replied. “It’s sitting empty. Then, we could figure out some way to run electricity
over to the house. I’ve got to do the same for David and Lorrie, so it just makes sense to
do it for you and Lucy.”

31
“I got to find my sister, too,” Clarence said. “She’s probably sitting in that apartment
scared to death.”

“We need to come up with a truck or something to move all of the furniture,” Gary ob-
served.

“What about the folks that bought those houses?” Clarence asked, “Won’t they be
showing up wanting to move in?”

“I understand that the couple that bought Dan and Dawn’s home were moving here from
San Francisco,” Gary said. “He got a job in LA. Assuming they survived the hit on San
Francisco, he would have no reason to move to LA at the moment, so you should be
able to use the house for a while, at least until they get the utilities back up. Why don’t
you just move your beds and maybe a couch and kitchen table? We should be able to
manage that in Ron and David’s vans.”

“What about the people that bought the house on the other side where David and Lorrie
stayed last night?” Clarence asked.

“Clarence, I don’t have the slightest idea who bought that house,” Gary admitted, “If
they show up, we’ll just have to move Lorrie and David out.”

“I’ll go find my sister and bring her back here,” Clarence said. “Then, I’ll go get Ron and
get him to help me move a little of the furniture. We couldn’t bring all of the food, so we’ll
have to bring that, too.”

“Why don’t I ask if 2 of David’s boys can give you a hand?” Gary suggested.

“I’d appreciate that, if you wouldn’t mind,” Clarence acknowledged.

Gary took a Navy shower to conserve the hot water and got dressed. He asked David to
pick the locks on Dan and Dawn’s house and to send 2 boys with Clarence. He also
gave David his PT1911, just in case. Then, he went to the office to have a smoke and
listen to the radio. KTPI was reporting that a large group of people was coming into the
Antelope Valley from LA. The Sheriff’s Department was segregating the people, putting
those that were prepared in the stadium of Palmdale High School and those that were
unprepared in the stadium at Highland High School. So far, according to the radio,
things were reasonably calm in the Antelope Valley.

The Antelope Valley was a bedroom community, with 85% of the people who were em-
ployed working in the greater Los Angeles area. There were 3 grocery chains in the ar-
ea, 2 served by warehouses in LA and one, Stater Brothers, supplied from Bakersfield.
As Gary listened to the radio, it became apparent to him that only Stater Brothers had
the capacity to resupply the grocery stores in the AV. That was going to be a problem in
the days to come. Banks were scrambling, according to the radio, to get their systems
back online so that people could access their funds and get essentials. Arnold had de-

32
clared martial law and was sending troops to not only San Francisco and Los Angeles,
but to the communities where refugee camps were springing up. Gary wondered if
Derek was going to end up getting sent to Chicago to help clean up that mess.

During the 5 minutes of national news, KTPI reported that the President had declared
martial law for the entire US and had activated all National Guard units. There were no
figures on the death tolls as yet, but apparently, the nukes had accounted for only a few
million deaths, primarily because of where they had been set off. However, there was
great concern over the effects of the fallout and numerous relocation centers were being
established by FEMA. The President had also ordered all aviation, except for military
flights, grounded for the interim. All US ports were closed until the military could be
brought in to inspect 100% of the cargo entering the US. Talk about closing the barn
door after the horses were gone… Oh, and the UN, or what remained of it, was offering,
or was that demanding, to bring in peacekeeping forces to the US to ‘restore order’ and
assist with rebuilding the country. The President had declined the offer of assistance.

There were one or two other rather interesting pieces of national news; the President
had ordered all US forces out of foreign countries. The US was at DECON 2 for the
foreseeable future, and the Threat Level was Red. This was an intelligence failure of
monumental proportions in Gary’s opinion. The country had been at Threat Level Yellow
the morning before when the terrorists struck. Now, millions were dead or dying, the
lights were off everywhere and 6 cities lay in ruins. It was just a shame that we would be
stuck with this administration for the next 4 years.

Chris interrupted Gary’s reverie. Darlene had been busy organizing the neighbors and
they were putting a barricade at the entrance of the tract to control traffic flow in and out.
He needed the radio that David and the boys were using.

“How are you making out, Chris?” Gary asked.

“I’ve got the generator running to provide electricity for the lights and we’re using the
fireplace for heat,” Chris said. “I’ll be out of gasoline and firewood pretty quick, though.”

“I’ll loan you 20-gallons of gasoline,” Gary said, “but you’ll have to replace it pretty quick-
ly, it’s my bugout gas. I can’t help you on firewood; we put in that gas log and got rid of
our firewood a long time ago. I’ve been thinking we should take the gas log out and try
and heat the house with the fireplace if I can find some wood. The thing is, I don’t have
any money to buy any firewood. And, until they get the phones back up, I can’t call Iowa
and ask them to put extra money in my trust fund.”

Unbeknownst to Gary, Matt had transferred $10,000 to his checking account, figuring
that Gary would need the money. The only problem with that was that Gary didn’t have
an ATM card for his Iowa account and didn’t know that he had money to burn in the Io-
wa checking account. It was unlikely that anyone would take a check on the Iowa ac-
count, either; at least, not until the mess around the country was sorted out. You’ll have
to give the banker credit; as soon as the wire transfer system came back online he

33
transferred those funds to Gary’s Wells Fargo account. It was the least he could do
considering how much the bank charged for managing the trust fund. (0.95% of the
highest principal balance, per year)

Gary was taking stock of where he had gone wrong in his preparations. The most obvi-
ous lapse was the failure to prepare for a nuclear event. He should have had a Geiger
counter and Potassium Iodide/Iodate pills. Secondly, He had assumed that they would
have natural gas for a while after an event, so he only had 2,000 gallons of propane.
Fortunately, they weren’t running the generator at full capacity, but if he extended elec-
tricity to the other two houses that would abruptly change. The gas log in the fireplace
was a lot more convenient than burning wood and cleaning up ashes, but he hadn’t
considered the possibility of removing the gas log and burning wood. Therefore, he
didn’t have a cord of wood stacked up next to the shed as he had in the past.

Then, there was the question of a fallout/storm shelter, or rather, the lack of a shelter.
He should have put a basement or shelter under at least a portion of the patio slab, but
hadn’t because of the cost. The most glaring problem was the lack of having some
ready money on hand. In his zeal to provide security, electricity, food, water and medi-
cal supplies, they had spent down their checking accounts and had no ready cash on
hand. Given the circumstances that they found themselves in, a little ready cash would
have solved the firewood problem, if nothing else.

On the other hand, he did have security, electricity, food, water and medical supplies.
With some careful conservation, he could extend those supplies to keep them going for
quite a while. If he only ran the generator briefly during the day and night to keep the
freezers cold, the propane would last a long time. They could schedule showers and
such during the times that the generator was up and further conserve. Food was the
least of his concerns; they had plenty, especially since he’d bought all of the beans and
rice.

Communications were a problem, but only because Ron and Linda were over a mile
away. A simple CB radio would have solved that issue, but he had gotten rid of all of his
CB’s and disposed of the ground plane antenna. Here again, if he had a little cash, he
might have been able to pick up a CB at Radio Shack, if they were still open. At the
moment, he admitted to himself, he’d be willing to kiss a skunk for a couple of thousand
dollars in cash. Ron, he figured, was as well off as he was. Ron had spent his last $40
at the gun store on those 4 bricks of .22LR and he didn’t have any wood for his fireplace
either. Ron only had ½ as much propane as he did, so he’d probably run out unless he
conserved.

At the moment, security didn’t seem to be a problem. The Sheriff’s Department was out
in full force, National Guard troops were supposedly coming to the AV and the neigh-
bors were guarding the housing tract. With the food supply being curtailed, as it was,
there was no telling how long that would last. FEMA was up to handling one or two dis-
asters at a time. But, 6 cities had been attacked and pipelines and substations blown up
all over the country. How long would security continue to not be a problem?

34
And then, like a bolt out of the blue, many of his problems began to resolve themselves.
Ron showed up late in the day on the 15th with a Uniden SSB CB radio and a Wilson
5000 antenna for him. Wells Fargo was back online and Radio Shack was open! Gary
got Sharon to drive him to the Wells Fargo branch and he stuck in his card and checked
his balance, figuring he could pull out $40 or $60. To his shock, his account balance
was $10,054.36. Unfortunately, the branch wasn’t open, so he couldn’t withdraw money
directly from his account. He took the $300 maximum daily allowance and got Sharon to
drive him to Radio Shack. There, he bought 3 of the Uniden SSB CB’s and 3 of the Wil-
son 5000 antennas. He would have bought more, but Wells Fargo limited his direct ATM
purchases to $1,000 per day.

Gary knew where he could get firewood, if the guys were still around. Once he got the
CB up and running (unit Olsen-1), he called Ron (unit Green-1) and asked him to come
over so they could go see about buying firewood. Since Chris needed firewood, too he
got Chris to ride along. The guy in Littlerock had plenty of firewood, but he wanted $300
cash a cord for it, delivered or not. Ron bought a cord and Gary bought 2, telling the guy
he’d pay for the 1st cord now and the 2nd when it was delivered. Chris, it seemed, didn’t
have much money in the bank and Gary was staking him to a cord of wood. Isn’t it
amazing what you can do when you have a little cash on hand?

The next day, the 16th, Gary and Sharon went back to the Radio Shack and bought the
last Uniden SSB radio and Wilson antenna. The store still had a half dozen handheld
CB’s so they bought the lot. Everyone else seemed to be buying the FRS radios. Then,
they went by the branch to see if the bank was open. It was and after carefully calculat-
ing his balance, Gary tried to withdraw the remaining funds from his account. Cash was
going to be king for the foreseeable future. The bank was limiting withdrawals to $5,000
per day, however. There was always tomorrow and he was a hell of a lot better off than
he’d been just 2 days before, so Gary didn’t complain.

The Sheriff’s substation was next door to the branch, so Gary checked with them about
the possibility of driving to Bakersfield for more groceries. The Deputy told him that
would be a problem for several reasons. Bakersfield was being hit hard on food and
there wasn’t much available. More importantly, travel was being severely restricted for
the next 2 weeks until things settled down and the authorities could get a handle on the
refugee situation. If he had enough food to get by, the Deputy advised, Gary ought to
consider putting off any trips for a while. Stater Brothers stores, according to the Depu-
ty, were allowing limited cash purchases, but you had to sign up and wait your turn.
They didn’t really need any food, they decided, but they sure needed diapers and for-
mula for Jeffrey. He was almost 2, so he could eat the same food they did, but he still
was on the bottle and wasn’t potty trained, yet. Walmart was just down the street.

35
 Preparations – Chapter 8 – Growing Unrest

Walmart had been hit hard and didn’t have much in the way of merchandise. They got
what formula and disposable diapers they could and headed back home. In their ab-
sence, the guys from Littlerock had delivered a full cord of wood. Gary got David’s boys
to move ¼ of the wood each to Dan and Dawn’s, David and Lorrie’s and Chris and Pat-
ti’s homes. Then, he proceeded to remove the gas log, cap the pipe and start a fire in
the fireplace. The fireplace put out a lot of heat, it always had, and he turned off the fur-
nace. The next problem to address was getting electricity to the houses on either side of
theirs. It was Chris to the rescue this time. He had several heavy duty, 100’ extension
cords that he used at the racetrack; he also had two of the pigtail extensions that con-
verted a single line into three lines. Gary had 4 spare circuit breakers in the garage,
they seemed to be wearing out and he’d stocked up. Since the generator was down, it
was no problem wiring in two 20-amp breakers and connecting a pigtail to each breaker.

Chris ran 2 of the heavy-duty extension cords over Gary’s roof to Dan and Dawn’s
house and wired them into the fuse box. Gary cut up an old extension cord into 2 20’
lengths and added plugs. He wired the other ends of the cords into the fuse box for the
house Lorrie and David were living in. He turned off the breaker for the air conditioner
and furnace and restarted the generator. Things were moving along. A couple of times,
people had tried to enter the tract, but had been turned away when they couldn’t estab-
lish to anyone’s satisfaction that they had a legitimate reason to enter the tract. Could it
be that security was becoming a concern?

“Green-1, this is Olsen-1, come in,” Gary spoke into the CB.

“Green-1,” Ron replied.

“How are you making out?” Gary asked.

“We’re ok so far, how are you making out?” Ron replied.

“We have all of the bases covered and have both houses wired,” Gary answered, “How
is the gas holding out?”

“I’m down enough to justify having a delivery,” Ron said, “How about you?”

“Send them to our place after they top you off,” Gary replied, “I need to top off, too. Had
any boogies?”

“Negative,” Ron replied, “You?”

“They put up a roadblock at the gate,” Gary said, hoping Ron would understand, “I’ll
give them your name.”

36
“How’s the chow?” Ron asked.

“I’m in heaven,” Gary replied, “But the XYL (ex young lady=wife) is already hating the
chili and rice.”

“10-4, T-T-Y-L, ciao,” Ron said and signed off.

“Ciao,” Gary replied and laid down the mike.

Chris hadn’t offered to return Clarence’s shotgun and Gary went to talk to him about it.

“If I can get you your own shotgun and front the money for it,” Gary asked, “Do you want
one?”

“Wouldn’t mind having a rifle and handgun either,” Chris replied. “And some ammo.”

“I’ll see what I can do for you Chris, I need to get Clarence’s shotgun back to him,” Gary
said.

Gary picked up the mike to the CB he’d set up at Chris’s. “Green-1, this is Olsen-1,” he
said.

“You’ve got me,” Ron replied.

“You know where we were when the balloon went up?” Gary asked.

“10-4,” Ron replied.

“Can you contact her?” Gary asked.

“Why?” Ron asked.

“Car 51 needs some equipment,” Gary said referring to the number on Chris’s racecar.

“I’ll get back to you. Ciao,” Ron replied and signed off.

This night was meatloaf; Sharon was already tired of the chili and rice. Nobody had
been around looking for food, yet. They were supposed to be at the Stater Brother’s
store at 9:30am the next morning for their $100 allotment of groceries. Since they didn’t
need any staples, Sharon suggested that they just buy meat, like pot roasts and steaks.
Gary agreed to a point, but it was going to be more like pot roasts, hamburger and
chicken if it was available. If Sharon really wanted steak, she could buy just one for her,
but the rest of them were going to eat more sensibly.

37
17Feb05…

When Sharon saw the price of steak at Stater Brother’s the next day, she agreed to go
along with the pot roasts, hamburger and chicken, which they did happen to have. It
turned out that $100 didn’t go too far when all you bought was meat. Stater Brother’s
wasn’t price gouging, but there was the law of supply and demand and they were pay-
ing premium prices to keep their shelves stocked. The average price for the cheap cuts
of beef was $4 a pound and chickens were $5 each for the small fryers. As it was, the
store was closing as soon as they sold out and resupplying overnight. The CHP was
providing an armed escort for the semis.

The bombs that went off in the 6 cities were proving to be dirty, according to KTPI, and
the federal authorities had ordered that the cities not be entered for two weeks. There
simply weren’t enough protective suits to go around, or, they weren’t where they needed
to be. The US was well prepared to handle a single nuclear event, but 6 went way be-
yond the capacity of the system to respond in a meaningful way. KTPI also reported that
US authorities had arrested a group of 5 men, apparently with Middle Eastern back-
grounds, but didn’t have any further information about the arrests.

“Olsen-1, this is Green-1,” the CB blared.

Olsen-1 here,” Gary replied.

“Tracked her down,” Ron said, “Terms are cash and carry at 125% of MSRP.”

“What time?” Gary asked.

“See you in 5,” Ron answered.

Gary was waiting when Ron pulled up in front of the house.

“Have any trouble at the entrance?” Gary asked.

“Nope. She said that she wasn’t going to bother with the waiting periods, but she has to
have a premium for her merchandise,” Ron explained.

“What does she have?” Gary asked.

“A lot of stuff that isn’t on the books,” Ron replied. “Keeps it at her home.”

“Then I guess that Chris is just going to have to settle for what I can get him,” Gary said.

$3,000 later, Gary had a Mossberg 500 (new), a Mini-14 Ranch rifle (new), an Argen-
tinean M1911 copy (used), magazines and a fair amount of ammo. He persuaded Ron
to stop by the branch so he could clean out his account. Gary filled out a withdrawal slip

38
but left the amount blank, asking the cashier what the balance was in his account so he
could fill out the withdrawal slip.

“I’m sorry Mr. Olsen, but we have a $5,000 limit on withdrawals,” the cashier replied.

“I shouldn’t have more than $3,000 give or take,” Gary said.

“We received another transfer from Iowa,” the cashier said, “The same amount as last
time.”

“I’ll take the $5,000,” Gary said.

“Did you get the money?” Ron asked when Gary returned to the car.

“Actually, more than I planned,” Gary said, “The bank in Iowa transferred another 10k
into my account.”

“How come?” Ron asked.

“I have no idea Ronald, but I’m not going to look a gift horse in the mouth,” Gary
laughed. “Besides, with hamburger at $4 a pound, we can use the money.”

Back in Iowa, Derek had driven to Charles City on the 15th of February. He’d had a talk
with Matt at the bank and explained his Dad’s location and probable situation. Matt and
he had agreed that, under the circumstances, the trust would distribute $25,000 to each
of the 3 beneficiaries of the trust, Sharon, Derek and Damon. They gave Derek $25,000
in cash and said when Damon showed up they’d do the same for him. They would put
$10,000 a day into Gary and Sharon’s joint account for 2 days and $5,000 on the third
day. Since his Dad didn’t have an ATM card on the bank, Matt said that they would wire
the money to Gary’s Wells Fargo account.

Derek had been called to active duty, but as a SSgt in command of his own tank. His
particular assignment was to provide security for the Capitol Complex in Des Moines.
Before he reported for duty, Derek stopped by the gun dealer he knew in Des Moines
and bought 2 M-9’s, 2 AR-15’s, 38 30-round magazines and 10 cases of ammo. Mary
had been in the Army and was better with the M-16 than Derek was. They were about
equal with M-9’s. Things weren’t really all that bad in Iowa except for the power outage
and the loss of natural gas. But, the cash in hand got them a large tank of propane, a
plumber to convert their appliances and a 15kw propane powered generator.

Derek had worked in supply for a while and had several buddies in the supply unit. He
had a talk with one of those buddies and explained that he had 2 brand new Colt AR-
15’s. What could his buddy do, he asked, to convert them to M16A2’s? His friend told
him to bring them in, one at a time and he’d see to the conversion (replace the lower

39
receivers). Derek had one of the AR-15’s in his trunk and got it and gave it to the man.
His buddy told him that he needed a couple of days; he’d let him know when the rifle
was ready. Des Moines, by the way, still had cell phone service.

Neither the Sheriff’s Department nor the Fire Department had detected any radiation in
the Palmdale area due to fallout. However, some of the late arrivals from Los Angeles
were making the instruments buzz. This third group of arrivals was being sheltered in an
area north of the AV Mall on 10th Street West in Palmdale. With 3 separate groups to
supervise, the Sheriff’s Department was getting spread a little thin. The troops that Ar-
nold had promised had yet to arrive. However, the local National Guard Unit reported to
the Sheriff’s Department to lend a hand. So far, they were keeping a lid on the situation,
but getting food and water to the growing numbers of refugees was becoming problem-
atic. The CHP had problems of its own and was unable to assist.

Ron dropped Gary off at the Chris’s house. Chris was glad to have the rifle, shotgun
and pistol, but almost choked when Gary told him that the total came to 3 grand, even.

“Timing is everything Chris,” Gary laughed.

“What do you mean?” Chris asked.

“A week ago, the same stuff would have cost you under 2 grand,” Gary said. “She sold
everything for 20% off MSRP. Today, she got 125% of MSRP.”

“That doesn’t seem right,” Chris said.

“Today, there was no 10 or 15 day waiting period,” Gary said. “Can I have Clarence’s
shotgun, please?”

Walking over to Clarence and Lucy’s Gary was amused by Chris’s reaction. A bird in the
hand was worth 2 in the bush and Chris had just been mugged. Maybe he wouldn’t be
so liberal in the future. If it had been up to Chris, they still wouldn’t have any guns in the
house, but Patti was far more pragmatic. She remembered that night a long time back
when some of Amy’s gangster friends had shown up at Sharon’s. Chris and Matt had
armed themselves with ball bats and headed to Sharon’s over the back fences. Along
the way, they picked up Kevin, an LAPD officer who lived in the house in between at the
time, and his brother. One of the gangsters had been armed and it was a good thing
Kevin was there with his badge and gun. By the time a Deputy Sheriff had shown up in
response to the 911 call the gangsters were back in their cars with Kevin in one car and
his brother in the other. The gangsters ended up back in South Central where they be-
longed and Chris brought Kevin and his brother home.

“Here you go buddy,” Gary said returning the shotgun and ammo to Clarence.

40
“Chris don’t need it no more?” Clarence asked.

“He has his own now,” Gary replied and left to go home.

41
 Preparations – Chapter 9 – It’s Getting Ugly

Stater Brother’s was allowing one appointment per family per week and Gary and Sha-
ron made an appointment before they’d left the grocery store for the same day and time
the following week. Given the price they’d paid for the meat, Sharon suggested that next
time they stock up on pasta and sauces, if they could. Gary was partial to spaghetti and
he readily agreed. Sharon had finally found a Marinara sauce that she liked, praise the
Lord.

18Feb05…

Gary was up and around earlier than usual. Some nights, he didn’t even roll over, it was
probably the Xanax, and he’d wake up around 7am with some of his muscles screaming
with pain. This was one such morning. He went to the bathroom and headed to the of-
fice to sit in front of his computer to have a smoke. For some reason, he happened to
look at the router and saw that the light was now green. He excitedly picked up the
phone and had a dial tone on both lines. He tried to dial Derek to make sure they were
ok, but he got the warbling tone that indicated that the call couldn’t go through. He then
called Ron to wake him up and tell him the phone service was back on. Uh-duh, the mi-
nute the phone rang, Ron would know the phone service was back on!

“Good morning butthead,” Ron answered. Gary had forgotten for a moment that Ron
had caller ID.

“Did your mother have any children that lived?” Gary asked.

“Just my brother,” Ron answered. “What the hell you doing up in the middle of the
night?”

“It’s 7am,” Gary retorted.

“I know,” Ron said, “I’ve been up since 5.”

“Trouble?” Gary asked.

“I don’t know Gar-Bear,” Ron replied, “There was a bunch of tire squealing outside, but
by the time I got out of bed, they were gone.”

“Did you check everything out?” Gary asked.

“Yeah, nothing out of the ordinary,” Ron said.

“Could you pick me up around 9 and drive me to the bank?” Gary asked.

“What’s for breakfast?” Ron asked back.

42
“Uh, pancakes, I suppose,” Gary answered.

“See you at 8:30,” Ron said and hung up.

After breakfast, they left for the bank. There seemed to be a lot of patrol cars on the
streets; at least a lot more than usual. When they got to the branch, Wells Fargo had an
armed guard on the door and he wanted some proof that Gary was a customer. Gary
showed him his ATM card and went inside. He made out a withdrawal slip for $5,000
and got in line. The cashier painfully counted out 250 $20 bills. She apologized for the
inconvenience, but explained that they had been getting hit pretty hard with withdrawals
over the past few days. She also told Gary that another $5,000 had been wired to his
account. Gary asked her if he’d be able to get another $5,000 the next day. She wasn’t
sure, but he could call before he came since the phones were back up.

They weren’t going to be able to go to Stater Brother’s again until the 24th and Gary
asked Ron if they’d signed up to get food. Ron said they hadn’t because money was
getting a little short. He’d barely had enough to pay for the propane. Gary didn’t say a
word; he just counted off 50 of the $20 bills and stuck them in Ron’s shirt pocket. Ron
had done the same for him more than once; not $1,000, but enough that he got through
a tough spot. He didn’t have to worry either; Ron would make sure that he paid Gary
back. They swung by Stater Brother’s at 25th Street East and Avenue S and Ron made
an appointment to buy food at 11am on the 20th.

“Jeez, partner, I never thought I’d have to make an appointment to buy groceries,” Ron
exclaimed.

“Wait until you see the prices,” Gary said, “Hamburger is $4 a pound and everything has
been marked up quite a bit because of the shortages. We bought all meat last time, but
are going for pasta and sauces next time.”

“How are Chris and Patti doing?” Ron asked.

“Fine. He almost crapped a brick when I told him how much he owed me for the guns
and ammo,” Gary laughed. “I think I’d better loan him some money so they can buy their
own food, too.”

“You might be money ahead,” Ron agreed.

“And food ahead, too,” Gary replied. “I’m concerned about you and Linda over there on
Sweetbrush, I think that you ought to consider moving into the tract.”

“Where?” Ron asked.

“The house on the corner next to Chris and Patti’s is in bank foreclosure and sitting

43
empty,” Gary said.

“I don’t know if Linda would want to move,” Ron said.

“Ask her Ron,” Gary suggested, “It’s a nice house, similar to yours and if you decided to
move, we could probably get half the tract to help you move. You can get AmeriGas to
move your propane tanks and I’ll cover the cost.”

“I’ll talk to her and try to get her to at least come over and look at the house,” Ron re-
plied.

“I’ll get David to pop the lock for you,” Gary said.

Gary went to talk to Darlene. If Ron and Linda wanted to move into the house on the
corner, he asked, could Darlene arrange for some help for them to move? No sweat she
said as long as Gary would cover the costs of gasoline. He told her no problem and
then went over to Chris and Patti’s.

“How you holding out?” Gary asked.

“Well, I’m getting low on gas again, and it doesn’t look like I’m going to have any income
for a while, so how would you expect I’m holding out?” Chris said dejectedly.

“Ron has about the same problem you do and I was able to help him out a little Chris,
how about I help you a little, too?” Gary commented.

“What did you have in mind?” Chris asked.

“Straightforward loan of a little money so you can get the gas and food that you guys
need,” Gary said, “I’ll add it to what you owe me for the guns and you can pay me back
when you get back to work.”

“Gee, I don’t know, I owe you a lot for the guns,” Chris said.

“When this is all over, I buy them from you at what they are going for at the time and
deduct that from what you owe me,” Gary offered.

“Well, ok,” Chris said, obviously reluctant to get further in debt.

Gary handed Chris an envelope and walked off. Chris opened the envelope and count-
ed the money. It was 50 $20 bills, the same as Gary had given Ron. That was about as
far as Gary’s generosity was going to stretch. Ron was his best friend and Gary had
been Chris’s crew chief on the racing team at one time many years before. Gary wasn’t
sure how much money was still in Wells Fargo, probably around $8,000 or maybe

44
$13,000, but they were going to need that money to get through this mess. There hadn’t
been any trouble, yet but Gary sort of figured that with all of those refugees, that wasn’t
going to last much longer.

19Feb05…

“Gary, get up,” Sharon called, “Ron and Linda are here.”

Gary didn’t appreciate being awakened, he was dreaming about some redhead named
Stacy up in Wyoming. She was one hell of a lot hotter in his dream than in the story he’d
written about her. He was just starting to get somewhere with her when Sharon had
shouted at him. He guessed he never know if she were a real redhead or not. He went
to the bathroom and then put his robe on. He stumbled to the kitchen for the caffeine
half of his morning wakeup.

“Morning,” Gary greeted Ron and Linda.

Sharon handed Gary a cup of coffee and he stumbled back down the hall to the office
with Ron trailing behind. Gary sat his cup on the computer table, lit a cigarette and took
a sip of coffee.

“Can I speak now?” Ron laughed.

“What’s up?” Gary asked.

“We looked at the house,” Ron said, “If it weren’t for the security concerns, we’d pass,
but there’s safety in numbers, so I guess we’ll move.”

“I talked to what’s-her-name and she said if I bought the gas, a lot of the neighbor’s
would help you move,” Gary managed to get out.

“How long does it take you to wake up in the morning?” Ron asked.

“An hour, more or less,” Gary laughed, “I’ll have you know you ruined a perfectly good
dream about a redhead.”

“Been there, done that,” Ron said, “They’re no different than any other woman.”

“It would have been nice to find out for myself,” Gary mused. “Anyway, I talked to Dar-
lene. And, I gave Chris some money to help them out. After I get awake, would you
drive me to the branch?”

“If I live that long,” Ron laughed.

45
Gary finished his cigarette and poured himself into the shower. If he had bothered to
turn on the light, and found the power off, he might have realized that there was nothing
but cold water. He was awake in a hurry. He got dressed, strapped on the Ruger, and
then remembered they were going to the branch and took the gun back off. He’d forgot-
ten to call the branch, but they had money to cover his withdrawal. He took the money
and got back in the car. It wasn’t until then that he noticed National Guard vehicles
parked all over the place.

“It looks like the Cavalry has arrived,” Gary said.

“Just in time, too,” Ron replied. “You may not realize it but the Antelope Valley is wall-to-
wall people. I think we’re in for a real crap storm.”

“Then we’d better get our butts in gear and get you moved to Moon Shadows,” Gary
said.

“Lyn already went to see Darlene, Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “They’re probably half done.”

Not hardly, but by evening, everything was moved, including Ron’s two propane tanks.
Gary had paid AmeriGas and Ron was busy helping Linda clean up the house and get-
ting them settled in. Dick had wired in Ron’s generator and ran lines to Chris and Patti’s
and to his house. The two homes flanked Ron and Linda’s new home. Chris got the 4
gas cans refilled (at $4 a gallon) and returned them to Gary. He told Darlene that she
was welcome to use the generator, but she had to come up with her own gas and cans.
Gary walked down to Ron and Linda’s new home and knocked on the door.

“How’s it going?’ Gary asked Ron when he answered the door.

“I’ll be up all night getting everything squared away,” Ron complained.

“I’d offer to help you out,” Gary laughed, “But I don’t know which way you came in.”

“Gar-Bear, that joke’s older than you are,” Ron said. “Actually, I’m about done. I’ll call
the phone company tomorrow and see if they can transfer my phone service.”

46
 Preparations – Chapter 10 – Gunfire

Actually, Gary was feeling a lot better now that Ron and Linda were in the tract. He
hoped Ron had some good luck getting his phone transferred. If they just had to change
some setting in the office, Ron would probably be ok. Otherwise, it could take forever,
he speculated. It was the same prefix, 285, so maybe Ron would be in luck. Gary wasn’t
very hungry that night and had picked at his dinner. Now, however, he was hungry, but
there weren’t any leftovers. He took his pills and insulin and went to see what he could
bring up on the Internet. There still wasn’t any long distance service, so Gary sent
Derek an email. There weren’t a hell of a lot of websites up either. With his pills kicking
in, Gary called it a night.

20Feb05…

It was 8:45am and Gary was sitting in front of the computer trying to wake up. He
checked his email and had no messages. That should mean something to him, but it
escaped him for the moment. He was dying to get more news about what was going on
around the country and decided to try the Des Moines Register’s website. The browser
seemed to hang for a minute and then the website came up. Halleluiah! The front page
had a picture of some tanks parked in front of the Capitol Building in Des Moines. Even
with his 21” monitor, the picture was too small to make out, but when he read the cap-
tion… SSgt Derek Olsen and his crew are one of a dozen tanks assigned to guard the
Capitol Complex…

“Sharon, Derek made the front page of the Des Moines Register,” Gary shouted.

Sharon came into the office carrying a cup of coffee for Gary.

“What did he do to make the front page?” Sharon asked.

“Nothing important; that’s not the point,” Gary said, “At least we know where he is and
that he is ok. It says ‘SSgt Derek Olsen and his crew’ so I guess he got the promotion
and his own tank.”

“That’s nice dear,” Sharon said and returned to the kitchen.

Gary could never understand Sharon’s attitude towards his two sons. It seemed to him
that he tried a hell of a lot harder to be nice to Lorrie than she did to Damon and Derek.
Theirs was one of those hers, mine and ours marriages that mixed the offspring from
both their first marriages with a child of their own. Oh well. He finished his smoke and
got a shower before the water got too cold. Things seemed to be stabilizing and maybe
they should consider running the generator longer. Propane didn’t seem to be a prob-
lem, so far, even feeding electricity to three homes. Of course they tried not to run the
generator during daylight hours. He guessed he should have had AmeriGas top off his
tank when they put in Ron’s but he’d forgotten.

47
Gary was dressed and back at his computer desk when Ron walked up to his window.

“You want to go to the bank?” Ron asked.

“I suppose I’d better Ron,” Gary said, “I’ll be with you in a minute.”

Gary got his Winchester and walked out the garage door.

“What’s with the hardware?” Ron asked, “You usually leave it at home when we go to
the bank.”

“I don’t know Ron,” Gary said, “It just feels right somehow. I saw Derek’s picture on the
front page of the Des Moines Register this morning.”

“What’s he doing?” Ron asked.

“He and his crew are guarding the Iowa Capitol. He got promoted to SSgt and got his
own tank,” Gary replied.

“At least they didn’t send him to Chicago,” Ron observed.

“Or Iraq,” Gary said.

“Let’s shake a leg, I’ve got to be at Stater Brothers at 11am,” Ron said. “I thought the
President ordered all US forces home?”

“He did, but that will take quite a while,” Gary said. “You know, I should have made sure
that Clarence and Lucy signed up for food and Amy and Lorrie did too.”

“Clarence already did Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “And the girls are welcome to ride along with
us when we go to the store.”

“Ok, thanks,” Gary replied. “Would you look at all of the National Guard troops?”

“I guess that Arnold finally got his butt in gear,” Ron said, “But you’d think they be at the
refugee camps than all over Palmdale.”

“If there are as many refugees as you said yesterday, they are probably just guarding
Palmdale,” Gary suggested.

“How much do you have left in the bank, if I may ask?” Ron said.

“About $8,300 I think,” Gary said, “We can get $5,000 today and the rest tomorrow.”

“No we can’t,” Ron said, “Today is Sunday. Sorry Gar-Bear.”

48
“We’re almost there Ron,” Gary said, “Let’s go the rest of the way. Who knows, they
might be open today because of the emergency.”

Good guess, Gary. Gary unstrapped the Ruger and went into the branch. He was back
out in 10 minutes with another $5,000.

“That leaves me $3,347.06 in the bank Ron,” he said, “We’ll pull $3,000 tomorrow and
leave the $347 to keep the account open.”

“When we get home, you send the girls down partner,” Ron instructed.

Gary had quite an assortment of money in his file cabinet. That one day, he’d gotten all
twenties, but had passed 100 of them off. Another day, he’d gotten all fifties. The other
times, he’d gotten hundreds. He had to take the tray out of his cash box to hold the
money and kept the locked box in his locked filing cabinet. He wished he had a safe, but
that would have probably just advertised the fact that he had some cash on hand. With
the prices of everything, hundreds were probably the best bet. Which, for some reason,
reminded him that he should get more wood. He called the guy in Littlerock and asked
him to bring over 4 cords for the fireplaces. The price was up to $350 a cord plus deliv-
ery. Somehow, that didn’t surprise Gary a bit.

Late in the afternoon, the National Guard came by. They cautioned the folks at the bar-
ricade that there had been a ‘little altercation’ at one of the refugee camps and suggest-
ed that the tract post extra guards. Darlene spread the word and Gary walked down to
Ron’s to see if he’d gotten the word. Ron was up on the roof installing the Wilson an-
tenna for the CB. Gary rang the bell and Linda let him in. She poured him a cup of cof-
fee and they were visiting when Ron came into the kitchen.

“Hey partner, what’s up?” Ron asked.

“The National Guard was just by and said there was a quote little altercation close quote
at one of the refugee camps,” Gary related.

“So, it’s beginning, huh?” Ron said, “I figured it was just a matter of time.”

“Got the CB antenna up?” Gary asked.

“Yeah, I’ll give you a call in a while to make sure it’s ok,” Ron replied.

“Would it be ok if I camped out in your bonus room in the garage tonight?” Gary asked.

“Yeah, have a fight with Sharon?” Ron kidded.

“No, your bonus room has a view of the entrance to the tract, the same as Chris’s gar-

49
age,” Gary said, “But it’s a whole lot warmer. I’d just like to keep a watch on the front of
the tract.”

“Do you really think we’ll have trouble tonight?” Linda asked.

“I don’t know Linda, but I rather be safe than sorry,” Gary replied.

“Ronald,” Linda said sharply.

“I guess I’ll be joining you Gar-Bear, the boss has spoken,” Ron winked.

Around 9pm, Gary returned to Ron and Linda’s with his Winchester, Ruger, M1A and a
knapsack. The knapsack was filled with extra stripper clips of the 7.62×51mm ammo
and several boxes of .45 Colt ammo. Gary was wearing his harness with its 4 magazine
pouches and there was already a mag in the M1A.

“I wish I’d bought more magazines for the M1A,” Gary said.

“Gar-Bear if you use those 9 mags, we’ll be up to our butts in alligators,” Ron said, “Be-
sides, you have those stripper clips.”

“I suppose you’re right,” Gary said, “But it takes a hell of a lot longer to fill a mag than it
does to empty one.”

“Maybe,” Ron said, “But I’d bet you’d be surprised how fast you can load those mags if
your adrenalin is pumping.”

Gary wished he had some night vision binoculars or a night vision scope, add that to the
list of things he should have had before the balloon went up. They removed the screen
from the window in Ron’s bonus room in case they had to shoot at anyone. Gary had
skipped his Xanax on this night and he was wide-awake. The extra strong coffee Ron
was brewing gave him the hives, though, and he took 2 Benadryl capsules. Most people
would fall asleep in minutes with 100 mg of Benadryl in their system, but Gary had tak-
en so much of the stuff trying to get off Xanax, it barely fazed him. Most over-the-
counter sleeping pills were Benadryl. That’s why they became ineffective so quickly.
People tended to develop a tolerance to the drowsiness that Benadryl produced if they
took the drug over an extended period.

Around 4am, Ron left to make another pot of battery acid. Gary must have faded for a
moment because he was startled when shots rang out near the entrance to the tract. He
was wide-awake now but couldn’t see anything in the dark. The absence of the street-
lights was very apparent now. Gary could see some of the people at the entrance re-
turning fire, but he couldn’t see whom they were shooting at.

“Do you think that we should go up there and lend them a hand?” Ron asked.

50
“No, a couple of old men like us would just be in the way,” Gary said, “Let’s just stay
here as backup for those people.”

“How the hell are the people shooting at the tract seeing who or what to shoot at?” Ron
asked.

“You’ve got me,” Gary said, “The snow is gone and the moon isn’t that bright, so maybe
they have some night vision equipment.”

“Where would a bunch of refugees get night vision equipment?” Ron challenged, “I
doubt that they are refugees if you’re right about night vision.”

“Well, the shooting has stopped,” Gary said, “So maybe whoever it has left.”

“Are you familiar with the term ‘reconnaissance by fire’,” Ron asked.

“More or less, why?” Gary asked.

“We might need to make some changes at the entrance come daylight,” Ron suggested.

“Like what?” Gary asked.

“Like fighting positions, you know, foxholes,” Ron said.

“Maybe we should have bought a few cans of fast burning powder like Bullseye at the
gun store,” Gary suggested. “We could have made some pipe bombs.”

“Add that to your list of things to do when you prepare for the next terrorist attack,” Ron
laughed. “That list must be getting pretty long.”

“It has a few things on it partner,” Gary said, “But, given the money we had to spend
and everything, we did pretty well.”

“We did, didn’t we,” Ron agreed. “We can always get the Bullseye, but who would sell
us pipes and caps at this stage of the game?”

“And fuse,” Gary said. “I heard someone say the other day that you can never be per-
fectly prepared for all situations. He said that preparedness is more a state of mind.”

“He’s probably right too,” Ron said, “You could have all of the preparations in the world,
but if you weren’t prepared to make use of what you had, it wouldn’t make much differ-
ence. That M1A is a nice rifle, but if you won’t pull the trigger, it’s nothing more than an
awkward club. Why did you put a flashhider on it with a bayonet lug?”

“I don’t know,” Gary admitted, “Probably just to po Arnold.”

51
 Preparations – Chapter 11 – Hurry Up & Wait

21Feb05…

It had turned to the 21st while they sat there that night. There had been no more gunfire
and around 6am, Ron took a gallon of his battery acid, er, coffee, to the folks up at the
entrance.

“Where was that fire coming from last night?” Ron asked.

“Across the street, over near the other housing tract,” Dick said.

“Could you see who it was?” Ron asked.

“Not really,” Dick said, “It was just a bunch of muzzle flashes.”

“I never was in the military Dick, so I don’t know this for a fact,” Ron said, “But, if it was
me, I’d put in some fox holes a ways back from the entrance. You guys all bunching up
like you were last night really made you stand out and some person with a good sniper
rifle or automatic weapon could have taken you all out in a New York minute.”

“Where were you last night?” Dick asked.

“Gar-Bear and I were sitting in my bonus room last night, sort of backing you folks up.
We’re kind of old for this guard duty crap, but we had your back,” Ron said. “Oh by the
way, thanks for installing my generator.”

“No problem, it was nice to have lights for a while,” Dick said. “You know that I ran a line
to Chris and Patti and one to my house, don’t you?”

“I saw the extension cords,” Ron said. “It’s no problem, but I don’t run that generator
24/7 because I have to conserve a little.”

“You know that I work for the gas company, right?” Dick asked.

“Yeah, but that’s more like used to work for the gas company, right?” Ron commented.

“The gas will be back online in another 10 days or so,” Dick said. “The estimates were 2
weeks to make the repairs and the last I checked, they were ahead of schedule.”

“That’s good to hear,” Ron said, “If we’re getting gas back that soon, I’ll run the genera-
tor a little longer each day. Have you heard anything about the lights?”

“Actually, those terrorists only took out a few substations here in California according to
my friends over at Edison,” Dick said. “Edison is making the same estimate to get the
substations back up. However, they are going to have to isolate California from the na-

52
tional grid. We’ll be ok until it gets warm but then the instate system won’t handle the
load. The Governor is going to have to figure out some sort of controls on usage once it
gets warm.”

“Let’s hope for a late spring and summer,” Ron replied. “You look into those changes I
suggested; I think that Gary and I could use some sleep.”

It was a ‘short night’ for Ron and Gary. They got about 5 hours of sleep and were up
around noon. Ron came by and picked up Gary for the last trip to the bank. Gary pulled
the last $3,000 from his account and while they were there, walked over to the Sheriff’s
Station.

“We had some gunfire at our housing tract last night,” Gary told the Deputy.

“Where do you live and what time did it happen?” the Deputy asked.

“We live in the Moon Shadows tract on Avenue R between Grecian Isles and 47th
East,” Gary replied. “The guards at the entrance of the tract took some fire just after
4am.”

“And you are?” the Deputy asked.

“My name is Gary Olsen, I live there,” Gary said.

“Was anybody hurt?” the Deputy asked continuing to fill out the report he was making.

“Not this time,” Gary said. “How’s about you folks run a car by there about once or twice
an hour during the night?”

“Mr. Olsen, we can’t spare the manpower,” the Deputy said, “But, I’ll pass it along to
those National Guard folks; maybe they can make a few random passes.”

“What was this crap about a ‘little altercation’?” Ron asked. “The National Guard boys
were around warning us yesterday afternoon.”

“We have a real problem guys,” the Deputy said. “The normal population of the Valley is
just under 400 thousand people. We have about 600,000 refugees from LA. “They’re
spread out between Palmdale and Lancaster and north of Lancaster. The Guard
brought in tents and is trying to supply food, but they’re way behind the curve with eve-
rything. And, they’re open camps, so there’s nothing really to keep the people from
moving whenever they please. We’ve tried to segregate the folks and that worked for
about a day. Then it all just went to hell.”

“Well thanks for the information,” Gary said, “Let’s go Ron.”

53
Once in the car and headed back to the tract, Ron said, “Jeez, that doesn’t sound very
good Gary.”

“I agree Ron,” Gary said “The tract has open ground to the east, west and north; it butts
up against another tract on the south. Anyway, that leaves us exposed on 3 sides.
They’re going to have to do something different to protect the tract. I’ll mention it to
Chris and he can talk to Darlene.”

“I could call ‘her’ and see if we could get some Bullseye,” Ron suggested.

“Call her if you want, but I don’t want any Bullseye, that was a bad idea,” Gary said, “But
I would like to get some things from her if she has them.”

“Like what?” Ron asked.

“More mags for my rifles, maybe some night optics and a suppressor if she has one,”
Gary said.

“Why a suppressor?” Ron asked.

“I was reading an article last year in one of the gun mags about a new .30 caliber sup-
pressor,” Gary explained. A flashhider doesn’t really hide the flash, but those new sup-
pressors do. Anyway, some outfit in Fountain Valley came out with a new suppressor a
year ago for .30 caliber rifles. According to the article I read, the rifle is no louder than
an air rifle and there is no muzzle flash.”

“She isn’t a class III dealer, you know,” Ron said.

“Some of the stuff she had at her house was illegal, even for a class III dealer Ronald,”
Gary said, “So I don’t believe that has any bearing on the matter.”

Later that day…

“Well, I called her Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “She’ll see us right now at her home.”

“Good, did you asked her about what I wanted?” Gary asked.

“On an open line? Are you nuts?” Ron said. “Hell yes, you’re nuts, I decided that a long
time ago.”

“I’m taking my M1A with me,” Gary said, “If she has what I want, it may need to be fit-
ted.”

54
“What can I do for you boys today,” she asked.

“Do you have any M-14 magazines?” Gary asked.

“USGI surplus 20 round mags are $50,” she said.

“I’d like 10,” Gary said, “Have you ever heard of a Surefire suppressor?”

“Yes…” she replied.

“I don’t suppose you’d know where I could get one and have it installed on my Loaded
M1A, do you?” Gary asked.

“Suppose I could,” she said, “Do you have any idea of how much money you’re talking
about?”

“Not really,” Gary said, “How much?”

“If I could get such a thing, it would cost you $1,800 installed on your rifle,” she said,
“That’s with the fast attach mount… supposing that I could get one.”

“And if you could, hypothetically, get such a thing,” Gary said, “When would a guy get
his rifle back?”

“Same time tomorrow,” she smiled.

“I was wondering if you could check out my M1A and add any missing equipment.” Gary
said, “Do you have any subsonic 7.62×51?”

“$500 a case of 500 rounds,” she replied. “I don’t recommend it and I suppose I could
bring your M1A up to specs, do you have the $1,800?”

“Do you have any night optics?” Gary countered.

“Oh, you want a complete refit, huh?” she said. “I might have a Gen I+ riflescope with
infrared for say $700. If you want some binoculars too, add another $300.”

“So $2,800 for the lot and I’d get my upgraded rifle back tomorrow?” Gary summarized.

“Fully upgraded and sighted in,” she said.

Gary still had the $3,000 he’d gotten from the bank in his front pocket. He took the
money out and slowly counted it out for her. He sent Ron to the car to get the M1A. She
picked up the money, took the rifle and went into her bedroom. She emerged a minute
later with a box containing 10 USGI M-14 magazines and the binoculars.

55
“See you boys tomorrow,” she said.

Ron and Gary put the purchases in Ron’s trunk and got into the car to return to the
housing tract. About halfway back, Ron finally spoke up.

“You really are nuts, Gar-Bear,” Ron said. “You’re 100% certifiable.”

“Why?” Gary said. “Think about it Ron, all of this stuff is off the books. There was no
sales tax or federal transfer tax or waiting. I only paid about $100 extra for the suppres-
sor. And some places were charging $50 apiece for the magazines last year before
TSHTF and couldn’t/wouldn’t ship to California. She didn’t gouge me one bit, under the
circumstances.”

“You probably should have bought more surplus 7.62×51 from her,” Ron said.

“We can get that tomorrow, partner,” Gary said.

When they got back to the housing tract, they noticed that someone had knocked out a
chunk of sidewalk just outside of the perimeter fence and put in a foxhole. There were
also foxholes dug in two of the lawns just south of the Northstar intersection, about 50
yards from the entrance. Apparently, Dick had passed along Ron’s advice or just gone
ahead and implemented it. After they unloaded the car, Gary walked back to the en-
trance. He handed Dick the night vision binoculars.

“I picked those up today Dick,” Gary said. “Why don’t you folks give them a try tonight
and let me know if they’re any good?”

“What is this?” Dick asked.

“They’re UNITEC-BNV3 Night Vision Binoculars,” Gary said. “They’re made in Russia
so I have no idea how good they are. According to the literature in the package, they’re
good out to about 300 meters.”

“Are Ron and you going to stay up tonight and back us up?” Dick asked.

“I don’t think so, we’re both pretty tired,” Gary said. “Besides, I put my M1A in the shop
today to have some upgrades installed so I wouldn’t have any real firepower to back
you up with. Ron and I talked to the Sheriff’s Department today and reported the inci-
dent last night. The Deputy said he’d pass it along to the National Guard and see if they
could make a few random passes past the tract during the night. Did you realize that
there are more refugees in the AV than there are residents?”

56
 Preparations – Chapter 12 – Family Matters

22Feb05…

Gary had taken his meds and hit the hay around 10pm the night before. He hadn’t real-
ized how tired he was until he sat down in his recliner around 8 after he’d done the
meds. Sharon woke him up at 10pm and sent him to bed. With the girls signed up for
food at Stater Brothers, any shortages they might have should be covered as long as
the store could get deliveries. He told Sharon to just run the generator 24/7, because
Dick had told Ron that the gas would be back on in about 10 days.

Gary woke up about 8am and wasn’t as groggy as usual. He got his coffee and headed
to the office for his first cigarette. Just for the hell of it, he checked his email. He had a
message from Derek! That was what he’d been trying to remember, he’d sent Derek an
email and it didn’t bounce.

“Went to CC on 15th. Matt dist 25k ea to bro, u and me. U also get 5k/mo next 5 mo.
We ok. Bro urway w/ Harley. P/u 2 ar & 2 m9 - buddy conv ar to USGI specs. Also 2 fal.
Fd no prob. All ok.

SSGT DEREK OLSEN, TANK COMMANDER”

So, the bank had sent $25k and was sending another $25k over the next 5 months.
Damon was apparently coming to Palmdale on his motorcycle and Derek and Mary had
2 M16A2’s, 2 M-9’s and 2 FAL rifles. They had plenty to eat and were ok. Gary sent a
reply:

“p/u 2 1911-m9 junk. eye open for D. we ok. TOM”

Now if Derek would just listen and get some real pistols, they should be ok. Gary didn’t
much like the idea of Damon driving 2,400 miles across country on that Harley, but Da-
mon wouldn’t have listened if he could have talked to him anyway, so he planned to tell
Darlene to add Damon’s name to the list of people to be admitted to the tract. That was
a nice way to start the day! Gary had some breakfast and headed to Ron’s. When he
got there, Clarence was sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee and visiting with Ron.

“Gary!” Clarence said, “Where have you been hiding out?”

“Under a rock Clarence,” Gary laughed, “With the rest of my friends.”

“It’s good you can keep your sense of humor,” Clarence said.

“Had some good news this morning, guys,” Gary said, “Got an email from Derek. The
bank is sending more money each month for the next 5 months. They’re ok and Damon
is on the way here.”

57
“Do you think it’s a good idea for Damon to come to California?” Ron asked.

“No, but he listens to me about as well as Kevin does to you, so it wouldn’t do any good
to tell him not to come if I could get a hold of him,” Gary replied.

“You know, we’ve got quite a pile of garbage built up,” Clarence said, “We need to haul
it somewhere and burn it or something.”

“I hadn’t thought about that, but you’re right Clarence,” Gary said. “I suppose we could
haul it across the street to that open field and burn it.”

“Or, just dump it,” Ron suggested.

“I’ll ask Darlene to call the Sheriff’s Department and find out what they’d prefer we do
with it,” Gary suggested. “Since it appears that I have more money coming in, I think I
may spend a little more with our friend, Ron.”

“What now?” Ron asked.

“Maybe a can for the Mini-14,” Gary said.

“Do you take crazy pills every morning, partner?” Ron laughed.

“Only on the odd days,” Gary grinned.

“What are the two of you talking about?” Clarence asked.

“Putting a silencer on my 5.56×45 rifle Clarence,” Gary explained.

“Why would you want to do that?” Clarence quizzed.

“To hide the muzzle flash Clarence,” Gary said, “It’s pretty hard for someone to shoot at
you if they don’t have a muzzle flash to zero in on.”

“Are you expecting trouble?” Clarence asked.

“Clarence, it’s not so much a question of if as when,” Ron said. “We had gunfire the
night before last.”

“Maybe we ought to travel in groups from now on,” Clarence suggested.

“That might not be a bad idea,” Ron agreed.

“I’m going to check with Dick and see if those Russian binoculars worked,” Gary said,
“And have a word with Darlene about the trash. How about we get together here around
3 this afternoon?”

58
They agreed and Gary left to talk to Dick and Darlene. The binoculars weren’t the best,
Dick said, but they would do. Darlene agreed to call her ex at the Sheriff’s Department
and find out what to do about the trash. Gary went back to the house and tried to take a
nap, asking Sharon to wake him if he wasn’t up by 2:30. The next thing he knew, Sha-
ron was poking his foot.

“It’s 2:30 Gary,” she said.

“Uh, thanks, babe,” Gary said, “Say, I’m going to see about putting a silencer on the
Mini-14 and maybe picking up another rifle.”

“Just don’t run us short of cash,” Sharon cautioned.

“I won’t,” Gary said, “By the way, the bank will be sending us $5,000 a month for the
next 5 months.”

“When did you find that out?” Sharon asked.

“Got an email from Derek this morning,” Gary explained. “They’re ok and Damon is on
the way out here.”

“Lovely,” Sharon said, not unkindly.

Darlene said that the Deputy said that trash collections would resume next week, they’d
just have to hang on to the trash until then. Gary got to Ron’s just before 3pm with that
bit of news. Gary had counted out half of the cash he had on hand to take with him to
the gal’s house. The three men visited for a while and it was soon time to head out to
pick up his M1A. Clarence asked if he could ride along and the three of them headed
out.

“Gentlemen,” she said. “Here’s your rifle, Gary, I hope that it meets with your satisfac-
tion.”

Gary checked the rifle over. It had the Surefire suppressor and a UNITEC-117 Russian
night scope on it. She showed him how add or remove the suppressor. It looked pretty
good to him.

“Would you have a can for my Mini-14?” Gary asked.

“$1,750 installed,” she replied.

“What about another M1A?” he asked.

“All I have is a Loaded standard with a carbon barrel and a synthetic stock,” she said,
“$2,000.”

59
“With suppressor?” Gary asked.

“$3,000,” she replied.

“Night vision?” Gary continued.

“You can choose between a UNITEC-GS37 or a UNITEC-GS18,” she said, “$4,500 or

$1,500 extra.”

“So, $4,500 for the rifle with the can and the GS-18?” Gary asked. “What about subson-
ic 5.56×45 ammo?”

“I have some, but it’s not worth the price,” she said, “Just stick with the government sur-
plus.”

“Magazines for the M1A?” Gary asked.

“I’ll throw in 5 20-round magazines,” she said.

“I’ll need some more 7.62×51mm surplus ammo,” Gary said.

“$200 per 800-round case,” she said.

“Ok, I’ll take the can for the Mini-14, the rifle with the GS-18 and suppressor, 3 extra
mags and 3 cases of 7.62×51,” Gary replied.

“$7,000 even,” she said, “Did you bring the Mini-14?”

“It’s in the car,” Gary said, “Ron if you want to get it for me, I’ll pay the lady. How long do
I have to wait on the M1A?”

“Is 2 minutes too long?” she asked.

Gary counted out the $6,000. That left him just under $1,000 in his pocket and just un-
der $6,000 at home. But, if the bank were going to send $5k a month for a while, they’d
be ok. Ron gave her the Mini-14 and Clarence said, “My turn.”

“What can I do for you?” she asked.

“You wouldn’t happen to have a FAL rifle would you?” Clarence inquired.

“California legal or illegal?” she asked.

“What’s the difference?” Clarence wanted to know.

60
“The CA legal has a 10 round fixed mag that you fill with stripper clips, she said. “The
illegal uses detachable magazines.”

“How much for the illegal?” Clarence asked.

“The one I have, outfitted like it is would be $2,000,” she said, “But the mags are only
$10 apiece.”

“Ok, I’ll take the rifle, 2 cases of ammo and 10 magazines,” Clarence said.

“$2,500,” she answered.

Clarence counted out the money. Gary noticed that Clarence was putting the money
down very slowly, almost as if it was hurting him. He pulled the cash he had left in his
pocket out and handed it to Clarence.

“I’ve helped everyone but you, pal. But this is all I have with me at the moment,” Gary
said.

“You don’t have to do that Gary,” Clarence said.

“Ron, give Clarence another $100, I’ll pay you back later,” Gary said.

That made the advance to Clarence an even thousand. Gary could see the relief in
Clarence’s face and was happy he’d been able to help out. They were all pretty well
equipped in the gun department now although Ron was a little underpowered as far as
he was concerned. Ron didn’t have a rifle bigger than 5.56×45mm caliber, but Gary
guessed that was Ron’s choice. Damon was on the way to California and he did have
his share of the money that the bank had distributed. They should be ok for now finan-
cially. The main thing was just to stay alive until those refugees started to return to the
San Fernando Valley.

According to KTPI, the feds had arrested some more of the terrorists. The south central
police region was a total disaster, so it didn’t appear that there was much to fear from
the gangs in that part of the city. The gangs over in the eastern part of the city had
bugged out and no one knew where they were. Maybe they had gone to San Bernardi-
no, but, when you thought about it, that was unlikely because the cloud of radioactive
waste would have gone right over the inland empire and those thugs were smarter than
to go where the radiation was liable to fall. So far, the feds had limited rescue work in
the 6 cities to brief over flights and some activity on the city borders. The radio said the
feds were planning on waiting the full 2 weeks before they moved in full force. That
would be February 28th or March 1st.

61
 Preparations – Chapter 13 – Food Riots

When they got home, Gary got $100 from his file cabinet and took it to Ron.

“That was nice of you to help out Clarence,” Ron commented.

“It was no big deal,” Gary said, “You know, Tony got him good and I always felt guilty
about that.”

“That wasn’t your responsibly Gar-Bear, the SOB got you for 10 grand,” Ron scoffed.

“I know, but I guess I should have warned Clarence not to loan money to him,” Gary
said. “Anyway Tony was probably in downtown LA when the bomb went off in some
tavern conning someone else.”

“If he was, he got what he deserved,” Ron laughed. “It’s people like Tony who give Jews
a bad name. He was always walking around flaunting the fact that he was Jewish, but
he didn’t keep kosher and he was a despicable human being.”

“I’m done buying guns and accessories, but I’m a little concerned that you don’t have
anything bigger than a 5.56×45, partner,” Gary said.

Ron got up, walked to the closet and pulled out a rifle. He handed it to Gary.

“When did you get this?” Gary asked.

“Around the time I put in the generator,” Ron said, “Do you approve?”

“What’s not to approve? What model is it exactly?” Gary asked.

“That, my friend is a Super Match M1A with a McMillan Marine Corps camo fiberglass
stock and a Douglas stainless steel barrel,” Ron said.

“Did you get any high capacity magazines?” Gary asked.

“I have two daughters in Arkansas, what do you think?” Ron smiled.

“How many did you get?” Gary asked.

“15,” Ron said, “They ran across some at a gun show fairly cheap and bought what they
had money for. And, before you ask, I have 5 cases of that Aussie surplus ammo.”

“How come you never said anything? And why did you give me a hard time over want-
ing more mags for my M1A?” Gary asked.

“To quote your least favorite President,” Ron laughed, “Because I could.”

62
°

23Feb05…

Gary was reading the Des Moines Register on the net when the CB let loose with some
excited sounding traffic. He turned up the volume to hear what was being said. Appar-
ently the National Guard had been by the tract and something was up. He quickly
dressed, strapped on the Ruger and grabbed the Winchester. On the way out the door,
he hollered to Sharon that he was going to Ron’s and grabbed a CB portable sitting on
the end table. Clarence was out front on his way to Ron’s. He had his new FAL and
magazines were sticking out of all of his pockets. Gary had an extra harness and belt
and several magazine pouches in the garage; he’d have to remember to give Clarence
some LBE.

“Did you get what all the chatter was about Clarence?” Gary asked.

“Nope. Just something about the National Guard being at the entrance and that there
was trouble,” Clarence said. “Maybe Ron got the straight scoop.”

By the time they got to Ron’s, he was standing on the front porch with his M1A, load-
bearing equipment with several magazine pouches and what looked to be a M1911 hol-
ster.

“I didn’t know you had a .45 auto,” Gary said.

“I don’t, it’s a .357 revolver,” Ron said, “But the holster works, so why not use it?”

“What kind of .357?” Gary asked.

“It’s a Colt Python, why?” Ron replied.

“I have 8 speed loaders for a Colt Python in my gun junk box,” Gary said, “Stop by and
pick them up.”

“Got any of those carriers?” Ron asked.

“No, but she had them at the gun store, so ask her when we go to pick up the Mini-14
tonight,” Gary suggested.

By this time, the three of them had arrived at the front of the tract. Dick was standing
there so Gary went to ask what was up.

“They had a food riot at one of the refugee camps,” Dick reported.

“Did they run out of food?” Ron asked.

63
“No. The Guard has been feeding them MRE’s, if I understood right,” Dick smirked.
“Apparently some butthead made a stink because he got a meal with pork in it.”

“I thought you said Tony was dead,” Ron said.

“I said Tony was probably in downtown LA when the bomb went off in some tavern con-
ning someone else,” Gary laughed. “Maybe I was wrong.”

“What the hell are you two talking about?” Dick asked.

“A guy the three of us knew. A real con man,” Ron explained. “He got Clarence and
Gary and a whole lot of people for money before Gary cut him off and threw him out.
Anyway, this is just the type of stunt the guy would pull.”

“Is he Jewish?” Dick asked.

“Only by birth,” Gary said. “Sure ate a lot of bacon and pork chops while they were living
with us. Ron’s right though, Tony could charm a crowd into having a riot over people
handing out money. His favorite stunt was getting you to cash a check for him. I’ll bet he
hung paper on a couple of dozen people. I have 3 of them myself.”

“So, what’s the situation Dick?” Clarence asked.

“The people in that camp are spreading out over the Valley,” Dick said. “The Guard is
trying to round them up, but there are just too many of them. The Lieutenant said that if
they tried to break into the tract to shoot them.”

“You’d better get someone to get the word out,” Gary suggested, “The message we got
over the CB wasn’t very clear. If anyone does show up, try firing one shot over his or
her head, first. If that doesn’t work, I agree with the Lieutenant.”

“I thought that the LAPD didn’t fire warning shots,” Ron said.

“They don’t, but we’re not the LAPD,” Gary said. “Besides, we should have plenty of
time; we have the block walls and everything.”

Gary decided that he’d better put away the cowboy guns and get his MBR and PT1911.
He told Ron and Clarence to come to his place and he’d give them some stuff they
could use. He gave Ron the 8 speed loaders and gave Clarence a spare web belt, har-
ness and 4 magazine pouches. He quickly loaded 13 of the magazines and put 12 on
his LBE. “Darn,” he thought, “That’s heavy; no wonder they went to the 5.56×45.” He
took the night vision scope off the rifle and put it in the Alice pack together with one blis-
ter pack of the surplus ammo, one MRE and 4 bottles of water. He grabbed a folding

64
chair and headed back to the entrance. If they had a chance to pick up the Mini-14 to-
day, he was going to spring for 3 more sets of the night vision binoculars, if she had
them. He’d meant to do it the last couple of times he’d been to her house, but it had
completely slipped his mind.

Clarence was waiting for him.

“Do you want a folding chair?” Gary asked.

“Might be a good idea,” Clarence said.

“If you can handle 2, grab one for Ronald,” Gary suggested. “Hey, what kind of .38 is
that, a Chief’s Special?”

“Yeah why?” Clarence asked.

“I’ll catch up to you at Ron’s,” Gary said. He went to his junk box and pulled out 2 speed
loaders for the Chief’s Special he used to have and stuck them in his pocket.

He joined Clarence at Ron’s and they walked down to the entrance.

“Here you go Clarence,” Gary said pulling the speed loaders out of his pocket. “Only
had 2, but they should help out some.”

“You have anything else in that junk box of yours?” Ron asked, “Like a few hand gre-
nades or something?”

“I wish,” Gary laughed.

They set up their chairs with the backs to the front wall. If it got down to defending the
tract, Ron and Gary would have to stand on the chairs, they were only 5’5” tall and it
was a 6’ wall. Gary looked at the rifle Ron was carrying. To be honest, he wished he
had that rifle and Ron had a feather up his butt. Then they’d both be tickled. “As long as
I’m doing clichés,” he thought, “Wish in one hand and…”

It was pretty cold that day and Dick went down to his house and brought back a small
charcoal grill and built a fire in it so they could warm themselves. Around 4pm, nothing
had happened and Gary suggested to Ron that they run over to the gal’s house to pick
up his Mini-14. Give him a minute, too because he wanted to get some cash for more of
the binoculars. They took their weapons with them and Clarence rode along, they didn’t
know what they might run into.

[Now, I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea about this gun dealer. In real life, she is
honest as the day is long, but I have to have someone willing to be a little flexible to
make this story work.]

65
When they arrived, she had Gary’s rifle ready. Gary asked her if she had any more of
those Russian binoculars and she said she had 6 pairs. He laid down the cash for three.
Ron and Clarence bought some nylon carriers for their speed loaders and they headed
back to the tract. Nothing had happened in their brief absence, so they went to Gary’s to
have some coffee and warm up. Gary hung one pair of the binoculars around his neck
and handed a pair to Ron and a pair to Clarence.

“These are a loan guys, you never know when you might need to be able to see in the
dark,” he explained.

“Do you have any ideas how many laws were breaking with these guns we have?” Clar-
ence asked.

“Except for the folding stock on my Mini-14 and the fact that the suppressors aren’t reg-
istered, none,” Gary said, “At least, not in most states. But the minute I bought back my
Mini-14, I was so far outside of the law that it didn’t make a hell of a lot of difference to
me anymore.”

“Are we going to stand watch tonight?” Ron asked.

“Might not be a bad idea,” Gary replied.

“Mind if I join you two?” Clarence asked.

“Do you like battery acid?” Gary asked.

“Huh?” Clarence mumbled.

“The coffee that old Ronald McDonald brews late at night is just short of battery acid,”
Gary said, “It gave me the hives.”

“I’ll bring some Pepcid AC,” Clarence said. “What time do you get together?”

“Around 9pm Clarence,” Ron replied, “I think we’d better use the upstairs bedroom to-
night, it will give us a better vantage point. As far as the coffee goes Gar-Bear, if you
don’t like it, don’t drink it.”

“You only need to use 3 rounded tablespoons of grounds Ron, not ¾ of a cup,” Gary
retorted.

“Then bring your own coffeepot,” Ron said.

“I might just do that,” Gary laughed.

66
 Preparations – Chapter 14 – Tony

It was closer to 10pm by the time they all got to Ron’s, got two pots of coffee brewing
and got settled in the front, east bedroom.

“How far is it to the entrance of the tract?” Clarence asked.

“I paced it today when I had to take Missy for a walk,” Gary said, “It’s 164 paces from
that foxhole on the right side to Ron’s garage door. Add 4 more yards for the distance
from the door to the window and you have 168. It’s 50 yards from the street to the fox-
hole, so I guess 218 yards, give or take.”

“Is calling it 200 meters close enough?” Clarence asked.

“Hell yeah,” Ron said, “It’s within 1 meter of being exactly 200 meters.”

“Good, this sight is set in meters,” Clarence said, “I set it to 200. That’s too far to shoot
in the dark anyway.”

“I’d have let you use my new M1A, Clarence, but I haven’t checked to see if it’s sighted
in yet,” Gary half apologized.

“No problem Gary,” Clarence said, “These tired old eyes probably wouldn’t do much
better with a night scope.”

“I don’t know, it’s 3x,” Gary replied, “Not all that bad for a cheap night scope.”

“Cheap?” Ron said, “You gave $700 for that scope.”

“Ron, a really fancy 3rd gen day/night scope can run as much as $11,000,” Gary said.

“How would you know that?” Ron asked.

“Research for my first story. You know, the one you never finished reading,” Gary said.

“I’ve been busy,” Ron protested.

“Doing what, watching Britney Spears on MTV?” Gary teased.

“I’ve got socks older than Britney Spears,” Ron protested.

“Do you two go on like this all the time?” Clarence asked.

“Have you been asleep at the switch Clarence?” Ron said, “We’ve been this way for 13
years.”

67
“Gary, can I have some of your coffee?” Clarence asked, “This stuff Ron brewed just
climbed out of my cup.”

“I’ve got movement on the other side of the road,” Ron said, “But it’s almost outside the
range of these night vision binoculars.”

“Call whoever is on the front gate on a CB,” Gary suggested, “And give them the bear-
ing.”

“Front gate this is Ron Green. You have a bogie at 12 o’clock at about 100 yards,” Ron
said.

“10-4,” the guard replied. “Got them, party of about 12.”

“See any weapons?” Ron asked.

“Not at this time,” the guard responded.

“There isn’t enough room for all of us at this window,” Gary complained.

“I’ll go to John’s room,” Ron offered, “Did you bring your handheld?”

“That’s my handheld you’re using,” Gary said, “Yours is next to your coffeepot.”

“Sorry,” Ron said handing Gary the CB.

“There’re more of them,” Clarence announced.

“Front gate, more bogies,” Gary said.

“We see them and they’re armed,” the gate responded.

“We’ve got your back,” Gary replied.

“10-4.”

“Gary, put your riflescope on the tall guy in the center,” Ron said over the radio.

Gary looked. Son-of-a-gun! He couldn’t be absolutely sure in the scope, but he saw
what Ron was talking about. The guy was the right height and build that was certain.

“I’m going to the gate,” Gary said over the CB.

“I’m coming, too,” Ron replied.

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“What’s up Gary?” Clarence asked.

“The tall guy in the center looks a whole lot like Tony,” Gary said.

“I’m coming, too,” Clarence said. “The SOB ripped me off too you know.”

“I’ll trade you even up anytime, Clarence,” Gary replied.

Ron was already halfway down the stairs and Gary and Clarence hurried to catch up.
They covered the 200 meters to the entrance in record time. Sure enough, there that
SOB Tony stood.

“Hi guys,” Tony said.

They just glared at Tony.

“I’ve got something for you,” Tony said, pulling off his glove and quickly reaching into his
jacket pocket.

BLAM, the three rifles sounded in unison.

“SOB was going for a gun,” somebody said.

“I’ll get the gun out of his pocket,” Gary quickly offered.

He reached into Tony’s jacket pocket and brought out a gun.

“Should we call the cops?” someone asked.

“What for?” Ron said, “The National Guard told us to shoot them and this guy had a
gun. I’d suggest we drag his body over to the field and dump it. If the Sheriff raises hell,
Gary can show them the gun he just took out of the guy’s pocket.”

All three of them had fired, two of them because the SOB had ripped them off and one
purely out of meanness.

“I’d better check all of his pockets,” Ron said. When he reached into the pocket that
Gary had appeared to withdraw the pistol from, he felt what might be some money or a
bundle of paper. Ron kept a straight face and searched all of Tony’s pockets finding his
wallet and nothing else.

“Gar-Bear, you’d better hang unto this guy’s wallet in case the cops have any ques-
tions,” Ron said handing Gary Tony’s wallet. “There is no sense in letting this coat go to

69
waste. I’ll take it home and clean off the blood. Some homeless guy might be able to
use it.”

“Why don’t a couple of you drag the body over to the field?” Gary suggested, “I’ve got
your back.”

Tony ended up flat on his dead face, the life drained from him and his pockets empty.
The three men walked back to Ron’s house and when they got inside, went to the kitch-
en. Linda had heard the gunshot and had gotten up and moved her coffeepot back to
the kitchen. A fresh pot of drinkable coffee was brewing.

“How much did he get you for Clarence?” Ron asked.

“$180,” Clarence replied.

“It’s all hundreds. Take 2, they’re small,” Ron joked, handing Clarence 2 $100 bills.
“Here you go partner, you take the rest. Probably won’t cover what the SOB owed you,
but it beats a kick in the teeth.”

“Gary, why don’t you take this $200 against what I owe you,” Clarence said offering the
money Ron had given him to Gary.

“Both of your debts are paid in full, courtesy of Tony,” Gary said. “I’d written the money
off a long time ago guys.”

When Gary got home, he took his Xanax and went to the office to count the money.
There was $9,800 in the bundle and $2,900 in the wallet. Tony had ripped Frankie for
$2,000 and Walt for $700. He put their money in envelopes with their names on the en-
velopes and put $5,000 in his lockbox. He put the other $5,000 in a blank envelope to
give to Sharon in the morning. Before he crawled into bed, he put the Sterling back in its
case in his sock drawer.

24Feb05…

Sharon got Gary around early to go to Stater Brothers with her. After he had a quick
shower he joined her in the kitchen where he handed her the envelope with $5,000 in it.

“What’s this?” Sharon asked.

“$5,000,” Gary said. “You’ll never guess who showed up at the entrance last night. Your
favorite person in the world.”

“Tony?” Sharon said realizing that Gary’s comment was dripping with sarcasm.

70
“Yep. Said he had something for us and went for his pocket. Ron, Clarence and I shot
him,” Gary explained.

“So what does that have to do with $5,000?” Sharon asked.

“He wasn’t going for a gun dear,” Gary explained, “He was reaching for a bundle that
had $10,000 in it. Anyway I guessed that he might not have a gun and palmed the Ster-
ling and made it look like he had a gun. There was something in his pocket, but I ig-
nored it. Then, Ron searched him and felt the money, too. He played dumb and we de-
cided to dispose of the body in the field across the road. Ron gave me his wallet on the
pretense that I should keep it in case the cops had any questions. He also took Tony’s
coat and we went back to Ron and Linda’s. Ron gave Clarence the $200 Tony had
ripped him off and gave me the rest. I counted out our $10,000 between the bundle and
his wallet and put the rest in envelopes for Frankie and Walt.”

Sharon was grinning from ear-to-ear. They had their money back and the SOB got what
was coming to him.

“Ok so I know where the money came from,” Sharon said, “But why did you give me
half?”

“You had to cook the meals and everything else,” Gary said, “So it was only fair.”

“We’d better get going to Stater Brothers,” Sharon said.

They bought all of the pasta and sauces that $100 would buy. When the girls went to
the store, they could fill in anything Sharon had missed. Buying just one category of an
item at a time, they could focus in on whatever they needed and the store had a lot of.
Next week, they would buy something else and later this week Lorrie and Amy would
also shop in the same manner. Gary told Sharon that since he had some found money,
he was going to get a different scope for his new M1A. He’d loan the first night vision
scope to Clarence and put the second one on the standard M1A. The new scope was
going on his loaded standard model. When they got home and had the car unloaded,
Gary walked down to Ron’s.

“Howdy partner,” Ron greeted him.

“Could you call her and tell her I want to buy the other night vision scope?” Gary asked.

“I’ll be right back,” Ron said.

Five minutes later, he was back. “She can see us right now Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “Go
get your money and bring the rifle and she’ll mount and sight in the scope no charge.”

71
 Preparations – Chapter 15 – Some Basic Info

Gary stopped by Clarence’s and borrowed his FAL ‘for an hour’. He got his two M1A’s
and counted his magazines. He had 23 M-14 magazines. He grabbed a bunch of mon-
ey, not bothering to count it. Gary took the FAL and his 2 M1A’s and headed for Ron’s.
Ron gave him a funny look but didn’t say anything. When they got to her home, Ron
helped Gary carry the rifles inside.

“I’d like that GS37 installed on the loaded standard model,” Gary said, “And the GS18
on the standard M1A. Put the 117 on Clarence’s rifle.”

“I can only install one for free,” she said, “But I’ll only charge you $20 apiece to install
the others and sight them in.”

“Fair enough,” Gary said, “How long will it take?”

“Three hours,” she said, “We have to take the rifles out to a place near Devil’s Punch-
bowl to sight them in.”

Gary counted out $4,540 onto the counter and told her they would be back in about 3
hours. Then he stopped, remembered something and counted out another $150.

“I also want 3 more M-14 mags,” Gary said.

She walked to the bedroom and came back with the 3 magazines. Gary stuck them in
his pocket and Ron and he went back to the tract. Gary went to Clarence’s and ex-
plained that he was having an improvement added to the FAL, but it would take 3 hours
or so. Then, Gary walked down to Ron’s.

“Why don’t you buy a night vision scope for your M1A?” Gary asked.

“Don’t have the money Gar-Bear,” Ron said.

“If I were willing to stake you to one, would you take it?” Gary asked.

“Of course, but are you sure you want to do that?”

“I should be getting $5k from the bank in a few days, Ron,” Gary said. “Damon should
be here real soon and I have enough money on hand to get you the GS37 for your rifle.”

“You’re counting your chickens before they hatch,” Ron said.

“I gave Sharon $5k and still have almost $500 left out of the $10k I got from Tony,” Gary
explained. “I set aside money to repay Frankie and Walt, too because there was just
enough. I can risk sparing the 4 grand for a week or so.”

72
“Are you ok on propane and food?” Ron asked.

“I need some propane, but I have plenty for what I need,” Gary said. “Quit worrying
about me, yes or no?”

“Ok, yes,” Ron said.

“Call and see if she’s left yet,” Gary suggested, “If she hasn’t and has another GS37, tell
her to wait and you’ll bring your rifle. I’ll go get the cash right now.”

Gary walked back to the house and picked up $5,500. He was back at Ron’s in less
than 5 minutes.

“Did she have one?” Gary asked.

“Yes.” Ron replied.

“Here’s $5,500,” Gary said, “Get the scope, 3 cases of the surplus 7.62×51 and 6 more
M1A mags, please.”

“Ciao,” Ron said after he tucked the money in his pocket and grabbed his rifle from the
closet.

“Why are you doing this Gary?” Linda asked.

“I owe Ron big time Linda,” Gary began, “He saved my life literally and figuratively. I’m
going to be 62 in about 4 weeks. In all of those 62 years, I’ve never had a better or
closer friend. Besides, with that scope, he’ll stand a far better chance when we get real
trouble.”

“Just wondered,” Linda said.

“Ask him to stop by if he has some free time,” Gary requested, “Otherwise have him call
me when we’re supposed to pick up the rifles.”

“Ok,” Linda said.

Gary decided to take a short nap. The next thing he knew, Ron was standing in the liv-
ing room with his two rifles and Clarence’s FAL.

“I asked Linda to have you stop by or call me,” Gary said.

“She told me, and I called, but Sharon said you were sleeping, so I told her to forget it,”
Ron answered.

73
“Thanks for picking up the rifles,” Gary said.

“The ammo and magazines are outside in my trunk,” Ron announced, “Why don’t you
get them while I return Clarence’s rifle to him?”

“Tell him the scope is a loan,” Gary said.

“There you go with that brown cow crap again,” Ron said, “You’d never take it back, you
don’t need it.”

“I was thinking about putting it on the Mini-14,” Gary said.

“You will have one on the Mini-14 in about 10 days and it won’t be this scope,” Ron
laughed.

“Ok, just tell him Merry Christmas,” Gary said.

“I’ll be back in a minute,” Ron said, “And I’ll help with the ammo.”

Ron Green liked to visit. It often drove Gary nuts when Ron and he would go some-
where and Ron would start up a conversation and Gary was waiting for up to a half hour
or more for Ron to say goodbye. Gary had the ammo put away, all of his new maga-
zines loaded with 18 rounds, another web belt and harness setup and magazine pouch-
es installed long before the minute was up. He’d gotten the mag pouches off the web a
long time ago and they held 3 M-14 magazines each. Each rig had 5 pouches on it and
2 full canteens. Gary almost staggered under the weight of 15 magazines and a half-
gallon of water. Each rifle also held a magazine, thus accounting for his 32 magazines.

Except for the knives on the rigs, they were identical and interchangeable. One had his
Rambo I knock off and the other his Rambo II knock off and both had an empty .45 Colt
Auto holster and 4 Colt mags spread between 2 pouches. He had a rig set up for the
Mini-14, too. It had 12 M16 mags in four pouches plus the canteens, empty holster, 4
Colt mags and his Rambo III knockoff. Although he carried 390 rounds of 5.56×45,
counting the mag in the rifle, it seemed to only weigh about half what the 160 rounds of
7.62, not counting the mag in the rifle, weighed. Of course, Gary could have carried
fewer loaded M-14 magazines, but he would just as soon have the ammo in mags ra-
ther than in stripper clips in his Alice packs.

Gary began to think that when the next little batch of money came in he would get two
more used M1911’s and make the rigs totally independent and complete in and of
themselves. On the other hand, there weren’t enough guns to go around. Assuming he
took 1 M1A and David took the other, DeWayne would take the Mini-14. That only left
the Winchester and his shotgun for 2 of David’s four boys. There was the 9422 but it
was strictly for hunting. Maybe he should buy a couple of rifles for the other two boys, or
maybe 4 identical rifles and give them each one. He guessed that it depended on the

74
money situation more than anything else. Since Clarence had both a Garand and a
FAL, maybe he would sell the Garand. Come to think of it she said she had several
Garand’s, maybe that was the way to go. He decided to go talk to Clarence.

“Hi Gary, come on in,” Clarence said. “What’s up?”

“I’ll cut to the chase, pal,” Gary said, “Would you be interested in selling that Garand
and the ammo you bought for it? I would be willing to pay you cash money for the rifle
and ammo and just exactly what you paid for the stuff. You wouldn’t be out a dime.”

“I have 3 cases of that Korean ammo,” Clarence said. “But I won’t sell the rifle and am-
mo to you. You gave me that money and then wrote it off and then came up with that
night scope, so you just take the rifle and ammo.”

“That doesn’t seem right Clarence,” Gary said.

“Ok, then I owe you $1,700 and you can deduct the price of the rifle and ammo from the
$1,700,” Clarence said, “And I want exactly $1,700 for the rifle and ammo.”

“Is that your best offer? Free or free?” Gary laughed.

“And I bought one of the WW II surplus belts to hold the M1 clips too and it’s included in
the price at no extra charge,” Clarence laughed.

“You drive a hard bargain pal, but you have a deal,” Gary said.

“I charge for delivery, too,” Clarence said, “Go home and put the coffee on and send
some of those boys over to get the ammo. Let me get you the rifle and cartridge belt or
whatever you call it. “I’ll be over for coffee in a minute.”

That simplified matters; Gary would just buy each of the other 3 boys an M1 and a car-
tridge belt. As restive as it was getting maybe he should take care of that tomorrow. An-
yway, all the men folk had guns of some description now and Sharon had his .32 Sauer
und Sohn war souvenir. He kept it loaded with one up the pipe because Sharon couldn’t
or wouldn’t get the hang of operating the slide on the Sauer und Sohn. Hell, he even
had trouble with it despite the trick Fleataxi tried to teach him over the phone. And, the
little Sterling POS wasn’t accurate for more than about 10’.

“You know the reason I bought that FAL was that the Garand is a real thumb buster and
I just couldn’t get the hang of it,” Clarence said. “Do you suppose she might have one of
those doohickeys that I can use to load the stripper clips into the FAL mags?”

“I expect so Clarence, she has about everything,” Gary said, “Or maybe I should say
had. I bought a bunch of stuff from her lately.”

75
“We all did Gary,” Clarence laughed, “You tell her I want her to throw in the doohickey.”

“I’m not sure, but I think that Magazine Charger or Stripper Clip Guide is a more accu-
rate name than doohickey Clarence,” Gary said, “But I know what you mean and will get
you some.”

“Do you think I need more 7.62×51 ammo?” Clarence asked.

“You have 1,600 rounds of 7.62×51 that should be enough,” Gary said, “Ron has 5 cas-
es and I’ve lost count of how many cases I have, but a lot. I had Ron get me 3 more to-
day, so I guess that makes 8 800-round cases of surplus.”

“What’s this thing about the different primers?” Clarence asked.

“A boxer primer is a lot easier to reload, that’s all. You can reload Berdan primers, but
it’s a lot harder,” Gary explained, “We’re not into reloading, at least not yet, so it doesn’t
make a whole lot of difference. They’re both reliable.”

“Why do we buy surplus ammo?” Clarence asked.

“Primarily because of price. And most military ammo has lacquered primers and necks,
so it’s a little better in a wet environment,” Gary said. “But mostly price.”

“Tell me a little about calibers,” Clarence said, “If you have time.”

“Ok, the current standard US round is the 5.56×45 or 5.56×45mm; we also use the
7.62×51mm. Both are NATO standard cartridges. That Garand uses a standard .30-06
round. The original AK-47 used 7.62×39mm and the new Russian AK-74 uses a
5.45×39mm round,” Gary explained. “There are other popular calibers like the
7.62×54mm rimmed Russian round and the 8mm Mauser. If you start getting into some
of those old calibers, it gets confusing, at least to me. Stick with the NATO cartridges.”

“What about handgun cartridges?” Clarence asked.

76
 Preparations – Chapter 16 – More Basic Info

“Now you’re getting into an area where there is a lot of personal preference involved,”
Gary continued. “The official cartridge of NATO is the 9mm. I don’t care for it because it
just doesn’t have enough stopping power. The one time Derek called me from Kosovo,
he mentioned that he was learning to double tap with his M-9, that’s the Beretta hand-
gun the US adopted, for that very reason. Take that Chief’s Special of yours for exam-
ple. It’s a .38 Special but it won’t safely handle the +P loads and it only has 5 rounds.
It’s almost on the short side of enough. I suppose you’d be ok if you stick to hollow
points, but I like something heavier.”

“Like that cowboy gun you carry?” Clarence laughed.

“Don’t knock it friend,” Gary smiled, “The .45 Colt has been around since around 1873.
It has the key feature I want in a handgun cartridge, stopping power. Those slow heavy
bullets tend to stop a man where he stands. That’s why the US used the M1911 for 70
plus years. It uses the .45 ACP cartridges. I’d like to see them dump the M-9 and either
return to the M1911 or maybe adopt the 10mm. The 10mm is .40 caliber and it has a lot
of knockdown power. The FBI uses a variation on the round called the .40 S&W. It’s sort
of a 10mm short.”

“Why didn’t they just use the 10mm?” Clarence asked.

“I don’t know. According to Fleataxi, they’re a bunch of limp wrists or something and the
10mm had too much recoil,” Gary shook his head. “Derek is 100% in favor of the US
going to the 10mm. If you can’t handle a pistol, the .357 has a lot of advantages. You
can shoot .38 ammo in it until you get pretty good with the gun and then switch to the
.357 ammo later; and the .38 ammo is a lot cheaper than the .357 ammo. The ad-
vantage to a pistol compared to a revolver is that you carry more cartridges and reload-
ing takes only moments. One disadvantage is that people with no strength in their
hands sometimes have trouble working the slide to chamber the first round.”

“If I were looking for a cheap upgrade from my .38, what would you recommend?” Clar-
ence asked.

“Easy. The M1911. You can get a good used knockoff cheap and it has that stopping
power,” Gary said. “The magazines were only about 8 bucks for the government surplus
7-round mag. She’s only charging $10 now.”

“It’s something to think about,” Clarence said. “I appreciate you taking time to explain it
to me.”

“Why don’t you come with us when we go see her next time?” Gary suggested. “I’m
thinking about getting 2 more 1911’s for my rigs and some Garand’s for the boys.”

“I might just do that Gary,” Clarence said. “Enjoy the M1. I’ve got to get home. And

77
Gary, thanks.”

25Feb05…

Gary was up early making ‘quick trips’ to the john. Something had gotten him good.
Maybe it was something he ate or maybe it was just nerves. Damon should have been
there the day before. He was probably sitting in a jail somewhere facing charges for go-
ing 100mph on that Harley. Hopefully. Gary had expected more trouble than they got
over the food riot thing, but it had only been 11 days since TSHTF. The longest 11 days
of his life and he was spending money like a drunken sailor, but there always seemed to
be something to spend money on. He counted his money. He had about $2,000. Make
that $4,700, because he had no idea how to get a hold of Frankie or Walt. Sharon still
had $4,900. That was food and propane money. 3 Garand’s at $500 and 2 used 1911’s
at maybe $400 plus maybe 9 cases of the Korean ammo would run him most of the
money he had left; say $3,000. He was going to buy those guns, he decided. They
could get by and you couldn’t take it with you, he rationalized.

After his system settled down, Gary checked his email. He had another one from Derek

“NCD .45 – G20/10mmx2+15. Bro Fstaff. All ok.”

What was it with Derek and all of the cryptic messages? Gary assumed the message
translated into no can do on the M1911’s, but that Derek had picked up some of those
10mm Glock 20’s he was so hot about. Did the +15 mean that he’d somehow managed
to get some of the 15 round magazines? Damon was apparently in Flagstaff, Arizona
and everyone in Iowa was ok. What was Derek afraid of or what did he know? Surely
the FBI didn’t have time to monitor emails just 11 days after the attacks. Oh well, the
message didn’t require a reply but he decided to send one anyway.

“Dear Cryptokid,

“We are all ok here. I thought Damon would have been here yesterday. Not much trou-
ble, but if you remember our houseguest and his girlfriend, he got his. Money was a life-
saver. Thank you. We have plenty of food and propane. Security taken care of. Why the
crypto?

Dad”

After he sent the message, Gary checked out the Des Moines Register. There seemed
to be an absence of national news, what did that mean? Up until now, he had been get-
ting more national news from the Iowa paper than from KTPI. He checked the obits, as
was his habit, and decided to back on out of the Register and see if he could get any
other news websites up. When he got the SBC homepage back up, he had another
message from Derek.

78
“1984”

That was the entire message. No hello, goodbye or anything, just “1984”. Oh, now it
made sense, ‘Big Brother is watching’. Apparently Derek did know something he didn’t.
There had been a lot of talk a couple of years back about some FBI computer program
that watched the net. Maybe they had a program running now watching for keywords to
try and find the terrorists or something. Derek and he had talked about secret communi-
cations a half dozen times and had decided on a book code if they ever needed to use
it, based on the King James Bible. 1- was Old Testament and 2-was New Testament.
Gary decided to try it out to see if it really would work.

Gary sent the following message to Derek: 2+1+17+5+28-31. (New Testament, Mat-
thew, Chapter 17, Verse 5, Words 28 through 31 = I am well pleased) If Derek under-
stood, he would reply in kind with 2+4+3+16. That referred to John 3:16, a famous Bible
verse. Even if someone could crack the code, they wouldn’t know that it had to be veri-
fied with that verse before it went into effect. Of course, this bit of news put a whole new
light on things; Gary needed to talk to Ron and Clarence.

9am…

“Something is very wrong guys,” Gary said. The three geezers were sitting at Ron’s
kitchen table.

“Like what Gar-Bear?’ Ron asked.

“Like I got an email from Derek this morning, in fact 2 emails,” Gary said. “The first one
was in shorthand like the last one he sent. Damon is in Flagstaff and Derek bought a
couple of Glock 20, 10mm handguns. Anyway, I replied in the clear and a few minutes
later got an email that said ‘1984’.”

“What’s that mean?” Clarence asked.

“It was a reference to George Orwell’s book, Clarence.” Gary explained. “You know the
one where it was a futuristic society where the government watched every move the
people made. I translated it to mean ‘Big Brother is watching’. I am not totally sure what
that means, so I sent Derek a message based on a book code we worked out a long
time ago.”

“What’s a book code?” Ron asked.

“Simply put Ronald, two people have identical copies of the same book and they create
a message by referring to page numbers, lines, words or whatever,” Gary continued.
“Our code is based on the King James Bible, I’ll explain it later. Anyway, I got back the

79
confirmation I needed after I sent him a message in the book code.”

“Sounds like a bunch of science fiction nonsense to me,” Ron said.

“Maybe or maybe not,” Gary pressed.

“Derek is on active duty and is a NonCom,” Gary answered, “He would have a little bet-
ter access to plans than your average grunt. Besides, have either of you been listening
to KTPI?”

“I have,” Clarence said, “But they don’t have as much national news as they did last
week.”

“Neither does the Des Moines Register, Clarence,” Gary reported. “It’s like there is a
news blackout in effect at the national level.”

“What’s going on?” Ron asked.

“That’s the point partner, something they don’t want us to know about,” Gary shook his
head. “Can you call her? I have some jingle burning a hole in my pocket.”

“It’s awful early in the morning,” Ron objected.

“It’s going to be a long day Ron,” Gary replied, “Just call her, please.”

Ron made the call and she would see them right now because she wanted to leave the
AV. Most of her inventory was gone and she had family in Denver. Gary grabbed his
cash and Ron drove the 3 of them over to her house.

“What can I do for you 3 yard birds today?” she smiled.

“I’d like 3 Garand’s, 2 M1911’s and 9 cases of the Korean surplus ammo,” Gary said.

“New or used .45’s?” she asked.

“Good used,” Gary said.

“Ok, $625 apiece for the rifles, $500 apiece for the pistols, $10 apiece if you want any
more mags, and $80 a case on the Korean,” she said.

Gary had forgotten the 125% bit, but he told her ok.

“I have one more case of the Korean, if you want it,” she said.

“Ok,” Gary replied.

80
“$3,675,” she said.

Gary counted out the money. They hauled the ammo to the car and he was just getting
ready to leave when he remember a couple of things.

“Clarence needs a couple of chargers for those FAL magazines and I need 3 of the
USGI WW II surplus ammo belts for the M-1 clips,” he said.

She walked into the bedroom and came out a couple of minutes later with a paper bag.

“I appreciate all of the business you guys have given me,” she said. “I put in 12 extra .45
mags and I want you to take that case of .45 ACP sitting over there. No charge.”

“Uh, thanks a lot. Are you leaving for Colorado?” Gary asked.

“In about 2 hours,” she said.

“Take care and thanks again,” Gary said.

He picked up the case of .45 ACP, the bag and headed to the car. On the way back to
the housing tract, he sorted through the bag and pulled out the FAL magazine chargers,
handing them to Clarence. He was as done as he was going to and their source for
guns and ammo had just dried up. He probably should have bought Clarence an
M1911, but Clarence hadn’t said anything and it had slipped his mind. He didn’t really
need the M1911 mags either, but what the hell, you could never have too many maga-
zines. Maybe there was room on the pistol belts for another magazine pouch or two, but
if he added much more to those rigs, he was going to have to add training wheels to
support the load; the suspenders were biting his shoulders.

Gary got David’s 4 boys together in one place and gave them each a rifle and an ammo
belt. He explained, rather than demonstrated, the problem with loading the Garand.
They were young and had quick reflexes. He figured it wouldn’t take them too long to
learn about the Garand Thumb. Flagstaff was a day away on a good day and Gary had
no idea what kind of roadblocks, if any, the CHP and Guard had set up on I-40 and the
other highways entering California. Damon was resourceful, when he had to be, and
Gary was beginning to think that his oldest son would show up in maybe 2 more days.

He loaded the 12 mags, plus the 2 in the pistols. Then he found 6 more pistol double
mag pouches and added them to the pistol belts. That got the rigs up to about the limit
of what he could carry. The pistols went into the leather holsters and the rigs were hung
up out of the kids’ reach. Then, he ate a light lunch and sat down in his recliner. He was
tired and was sound asleep in minutes. Gary was awakened some time later, he had no
idea what time it was, by a lot of gunfire coming from the entrance of the tract. He slid
into a rig, grabbed the loaded M1A and a handheld and headed to the entrance to the
tract.

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 Preparations – Chapter 17 – Fun, Fun, Fun?

Gary wasn’t moving too fast, loaded down the way he was. Maybe he needed to lose
some of those magazine pouches. 5 M-14 pouches (15 mags), 4 M1911 pouches (8
mags) and 2 quarts of water made for a pretty heavy load for a tired old man. He round-
ed the corner where Moonraker Road turned into Stardust Place and squatted down
next to Jose’s fence. He could see Chris and Matt about ½ way to the entrance, trying
to get there, but moving slowly. There was a lot of fire coming into the tract from across
the road. Where in the hell was the National Guard, anyway? Gary began to work his
way slowly towards the entrance, keeping low. Ron joined him, followed a minute or two
later by Clarence. They weren’t making much headway because of the volume of fire.

Most of the fire was going over their heads, and belly crawling wasn’t really an option
with all of those mag pouches. If they were going to get hit, it would probably be in the
butt; that stuck up the furthest. They made it to the next house with the rail fence and
moved across the lawn. In this yard, they were pretty much out of the line of fire. Gary
had taken just a moment and had interchanged the “day module eyepiece” with the
“night module eyepiece”, giving him a daylight scope. The next two houses didn’t have
fences and that would bring them up to the right side foxhole. They stayed close to the
homes and out of the line of fire. When they got near the fighting position, Gary unbuck-
led his harness and let the rig fall to the ground and noticed that Ron and Clarence did
the same.

From this vantage point, the men could see a lot of people, and I mean a LOT of peo-
ple, in the field across the road. The GS37 was variable from 4 to 12 power. Gary
cranked his scope to 12X, laid the cross hairs on a guy, did the breathing bit and
squeezed; one down and a jillion-1 to go. He wasn’t hitting with every shot, but even the
misses helped to keep their heads down, whoever ‘they’ were. He seemed to be firing
about one round every 10 seconds. Eventually the bolt locked open and he swapped
mags. He noticed in the process that Ron was keeping pace with him, but Clarence was
firing a lot more often. Clarence had fewer mags (10) than Gary (16) or Ron (15). He
was going to get to use that magazine charger very soon.

It didn’t take Gary quite as long to empty the second magazine, but then, he’d scored
fewer hits, too. Bullets were whizzing over their heads and kicking up dirt all around
them, but so far none of them had been hit. A round hit Gary’s straw hat, lifting it from
the ground where he’d thrown it and sailing it through the air. That po’d him off royally
and he concentrated on making his shots count. Where in the hell were the cops and
Guard? Gary heard a yell and looked. Matt had been grazed by a bullet and looked to
be bleeding fairly heavily. Chris took a moment to slap on one of the battle dressings
Gary had given him way back when and returned to defending the tract. Gary had
bought a whole carton of the battle dressings, never really imagining that they’d need
them. He’d passed them out among some of the folks like Dick, Chris, Ron, Clarence
and Gary’s family members.

82
The defenders seemed to be taking a toll on whoever was in the field across the street.
So far the only defender casualties were Matt and one very treasured hat. They had
added more foxholes, but it was becoming apparent that they hadn’t added enough.
Gary heard another grunt and looked to see who was hit this time. Ron lay slumped with
blood pouring from his head. Gary grabbed his battle dressing and 1911 and worked his
way over to Ron. It was a glancing hit that had gouged a deep furrow in Ron’s scalp.
He’d live, but man was he going to have a headache. He might even have a concus-
sion, but this was neither the time nor place to worry about that. Gary put the battle
dressing on as best he could, picked up the 1911 and returned to his rifle. He could
hear the sirens in the distance and hoped it was the Sheriff’s Department and not a fire
truck.

By this time, Gary wasn’t worrying so much about aimed fire as just keeping the but-
theads across the street heads down. He was going through a magazine a minute,
maybe more. He cranked off on the setting from 12X to 4X and was rewarded with a
much larger 10-degree field of view. At 12X, the field of view was narrow, only about 3
degrees. With the bigger field, Gary could see several men across the road that were
far too exposed and he took his time and shot several of them. He wasn’t concerned
about making a killing shot each time, just stopping them. He noticed that Clarence had
a blister pak open and was getting familiar with the magazine charger. That was the last
thing he noticed, the lights suddenly went out.

Clarence noticed that Gary was down. He stopped reloading his magazines and went to
help Gary. He couldn’t find blood anywhere, but old Gar-Bear was unconscious. Clar-
ence wondered what could account for that and looked around. Well, there was a fist-
sized rock lying not too far away, maybe it had been struck by a bullet and had clob-
bered Gary in the head. The rock looked like a bullet might have grazed it. There was
nothing he could do for Gary, so Clarence resumed loading magazines and when he
was done continued firing. It was about then that the National Guard and LA County
Sheriff’s Department arrived on the scene. Clarence put down the FAL and went to
check on Ron and Gary. Both men were still unconscious and Gary had stopped Ron’s
bleeding so Clarence waited for the guys that were piling out of the Paramedic truck to
come help his two friends.

Clarence had never felt so helpless in his life. One of the paramedics went to check on
Matt and one came to check on Ron and Gary. Since Ron had blood on him the Para-
medic examined him first. An ammonia inhalant snapped Ron back to consciousness
and he reached for his head and ran into the bandage.

“What happened?” Ron groaned.

“You got shot in the head, Ron,” Clarence said.

“Well good,” Ron tried to joke, “At least I didn’t get hit in a vital spot.”

83
The Paramedic moved to Gary and applied the ammonia to him. Gary’s eyes popped
open after a moment or two and he started cussing a blue streak. The Paramedic
checked Gary’s eyes and saw that the right eye was slightly dilated. It appeared that
Gary had a mild concussion. Gary had a good heartbeat, so the Paramedic moved back
to Ron. He checked Ron’s eyes and the right one was dilated, too. Apparently he also
had a mild concussion. However, when he listened to Ron’s heart, he didn’t like what he
heard.

“Does this man have a history of heart disease?” he asked Clarence.

“I guess, he had a bypass a few years ago,” Clarence said trying to remember when
Ron had had the surgery. (1992)

The Paramedic pulled Ron’s shirt further open and began slapping on electrodes. When
Ron was hooked up, he monitored Ron’s heartbeat. It appeared that Ron was missing
beats in blocks, but he couldn’t be 100% certain. For sure Ron was going to the hospital
in Lancaster. Under normal circumstances, they would have transported Gary too, but
Gary’s eye wasn’t all that dilated and aside from the cussing, he seemed to be doing ok.

They put Matt and Ron in one ambulance and transported the two men to Lancaster
Community Hospital. With only two operating hospitals in the AV, the hospitals were
swamped. However since the men were brought in by ambulance, they went to the front
of the line. Matt only needed a couple of stitches and a tetanus shot and he would be
ok. As it happened, Ron’s cardiologist was helping out in the ER that day. When he saw
Ron, he went to check with the Paramedics. The EKG didn’t look all that good, so he
told the nurses to admit Ron for possible surgery the next day after his head was sewn
up. He had to observe Ron before he’d be sure, but it appeared that Ron might need a
pacemaker.

Chris had followed the ambulance to Lancaster and Clarence and Dick had gathered up
Ron and Gary’s things and taken them to Gary’s. At least Gary had stopped cussing
when Sharon had put an ice pack on his head and given him 2 Vicodin ES. The Para-
medics had given Clarence a handout about head injuries to give to Sharon and she
was keeping an eye on him. “His head must really hurt,” she thought, “He hasn’t even
reached for a cigarette.”

Chris and Matt returned to the tract about two hours later. The National Guard had killed
most of the attackers, and had transported those who had surrendered to a detention
facility erected at Plant 42. It was the typical barbed wire enclosure with a few tents in it.
None of the detainees were being abused, but neither were they receiving much care.
The wounded were patched up by medics and taken to the same lockup. If they lived,
they lived. A medic checked on the patients twice a day, but they weren’t really receiv-
ing the treatment one might have expected.

84
After observing Ron’s EKG for a while Dr. E decided that Ron had to have the pace-
maker. He scheduled surgery for 6am. Sharon and Lucy had driven Linda to the hospi-
tal; and a couple of David’s boys had come along for company. Their Garand’s were in
the trunk and they’d borrowed 2 of the 1911’s and had those stuck in the small of their
backs. Dr. E suggested that after Linda checked on Ron she return home, the hospital
was just too crowed for visitors. He told her to be there at 6am the next morning for the
surgery.

[In real life, Ron is getting a pacemaker put in tomorrow, 02Jul04. – TOM]

Clarence came by late in the day to check on Gary.

“How are you doing?” Clarence asked.

“It feels like I got smacked by a baseball bat,” Gary said.

“More like the baseball,” Clarence said handing a rock to Gary.

“What’s this?” Gary asked.

“I do believe it’s the rock that smacked you upside the head, Gary,” Clarence said.

“You heard anything about Ron?” Gary asked.

“Minor heart problem and a concussion,” Clarence said. “They’re going to put in a
pacemaker tomorrow and he should be home the day after, if there are no problems.”

“You ok?” Gary asked.

“Didn’t get hurt in the battle if that’s what you’re asking,” Clarence said, “But having Ron
and you down and out doesn’t make me too happy.”

“I’ll be ok after I get some rest Clarence,” Gary said, “Thanks for your concern. How are
you holding up? Anymore heart problems or anything?”

“Nah. The Paramedic checked me out before he left, I’m fine,” Clarence said.

What the Paramedic had really said was that Clarence seemed to be fine, but he had
recommended that Clarence see his cardiologist soon. The old lub-dub was more like
lu-dub. Clarence had made an appointment to see Ron’s cardiologist after Ron got out
of surgery the next day. Clarence didn’t figure he needed to bother Gary with his prob-
lems, besides, he felt fine.

26Feb05…

85
Gary hadn’t heard Sharon leave to drive Linda to Lancaster. He woke up around 9am
with a splitting headache. He looked in the mirror and his pupils seemed to be normal.
He went to the China cabinet and got his little MagLite and tested his pupil reactions
standing in front of the bathroom mirror. They seemed to be equal and reactive, so
maybe the concussion wasn’t too bad. He debated whether to take 2 Tylenol or 2 Vi-
codin ES. The Vicodin won out. The coffee in the pot was about half warm, so he
poured a cup and warmed it in the microwave. Then he gritted his teeth and headed
down the hall to his office and flopped into his chair.

Gary checked his emails and had one from Derek. It was in the book code and his head
hurt too much to try and decipher it. If it were extremely urgent, the top line would have
begun with an asterisk and he didn’t see one. He hoped Damon would show up today,
he didn’t like the idea of Damon being out there alone. But, knowing Damon, he’d
bought a shotgun, put a pistol grip on it and cut the barrel down to 14” or, cut the barrel
and magazine tube down even further. Damon was as partial to the 3” 15-pellet 00
buckshot as he was. And, if Damon saw a roadblock, he’d probably just go cross-
county. His bike wasn’t loaded down with a lot of junk, just saddlebags, if Gary remem-
bered right. Damon’s biggest problem was that he was just like Gary but didn’t have a
rich father to spoil him.

Sharon got back from Lancaster around 10am. Ron came through the surgery with fly-
ing colors and unless something changed, he’d be home tomorrow. Sharon asked how
Gary felt and he said that other than the headache, he was fine. He was going over to
tell Clarence how Ron had made out.

“Morning Gary, how are you doing? You look good,” Clarence said.

“I got a headache that won’t quit, but I’ll be ok,” Gary said. “Sharon just got back from
Lancaster. Ronald McDonald came through the operation with flying colors, according
to her. She said he’d be home tomorrow.”

“That’s good to hear,” Care for a cup of coffee?” Clarence inquired.

“As long as it’s not battery acid, sure,” Gary managed a weak smile.

“You do look a little peaked,” Clarence observed.

“In 34 years of drinking, I never had a head like this,” Gary said, “At least as far as I can
remember.”

“Did you take something for the headache?” Clarence asked.

“Vicodin ES,” Gary said, “But when I get home I think I’ll take 2 more.”

“I went to the doctor today,” Clarence said.

86
“Why? You said you were ok,” Gary commented.

“I am, he just changed one of my meds,” Clarence said. “I like Ron’s doctor; he gave me
a 6 month supply of samples.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 18 – Ouch, That Hurts

Gary finished off the coffee quickly and returned home. He wanted to take more Vicodin
ES and he was very upset over Clarence. When Clarence had said Ron’s doctor, Gary
had realized that Clarence must have been having heart problems of his own. Crap,
Ron with a pacemaker and Clarence was changing meds. Gary’s heart was ‘fine’, so
that probably meant that he’d drop dead first. Well, not yet, he had to get his family
through whatever was going on. The very idea that someone was censoring the news
did not sit well with him. Gary purely hated Reporters, but he hated censorship even
more. The reporters needed to learn to balance what they reported and just stick to re-
porting and stop speculating. The government needed to stop lying to the media and
everyone else.

He felt good enough to try and decipher the message from Derek. It was short, so it
shouldn’t be too hard. The original message read:

1+2+3+2+21, 1+5+6+20+4-6, 2+1+7+22, 1+5+6+25+6,2+1+16+6+9

It translated into:

Bush bear false witness many die beware

Uh, right. This was not good news. If Gary had translated the message correctly, Derek
was telling him that Dubya was lying and many had died in the attacks. He wasn’t sure
what Derek meant by ‘beware’ but suspected that the government might turn heavy
handed. There was some evidence of that with what he’d heard was going on at Plant
42 with the prisoners. There were also the problems the refugees were experiencing.
Instead of setting up field kitchens and feeding the people hot meals, they were being
given MRE’s. And, darn it, California or not, it got cold in the high desert around the end
of February and the first part of March. Gary decided that headache be darned, he’d
better talk this one over with Chris. Besides, he wanted to know how Matt was doing.

“Hi ya,” Chris greeted him, “Come in.”

“How’s Matt doing?” Gary asked.

“It actually took 7 stitches to close that wound, but he’s fine,” Chris said, “Sore as hell,
but fine. How are you?”

“Man I haven’t ever had a headache like this,” Gary said, “4 Vicodin ES haven’t even
touched it. Say, I got a message from my son today, got a minute?”

“Which one?” Chris asked, “Army or Navy?”

“Army,” Gary said, “Anyway he sent me an encrypted message that said Bush is lying
and that many people died. It also said beware.”

88
“Can you translate into English for me?” Chris asked.

“What I think Derek was trying to say was that the government is getting heavy handed,”
Gary opined, “You know the situation at those refugee camps and at Plant 42, don’t
you?”

“I’ve heard a few things, nothing good,” Chris replied.

“Clarence seems to be having some sort of heart problem, the doctor changed his
meds, and Ron had to have a pacemaker put in today,” Gary explained. “I’m worried
that we may be in for trouble from the government to top everything off.”

“Have they gotten into the cities that were nuked?” Chris inquired.

“Not for 2 more days, maybe 3,” Gary answered.

“Dick says that the natural gas will be up in a few days,” Chris comment.

“He said about 10 days back on the 21st, so that would be what, March 3rd?” Gary
asked.

“Actually, I think they’re ahead of schedule and it should be back on February 28th, two
days from now,” Chris updated Gary.

“Really? Any word on the electricity?” Gary inquired.

“28th or the 1st, according to Dick,” Chris replied.

“Are you guys getting along ok?” Gary asked. “Do you have everything you need?”

“Could you spare a case of rifle ammo?” Chris asked.

“5.56×45?” Gary asked.

“Yeah,” Chris answered.

“Gee, I only had 2 cases, Chris,” Gary said, “I bought you more than that didn’t I?”

“Yeah, but I gave some to Dick,” Chris said.

“Well, I think Ron has a lot of 5.56×45, I can ask him tomorrow when he gets home from
the hospital,” Gary said. “You aren’t out are you?”

“No, but I only have one case left,” Chris said.

89
“I’ll see what I can do, that’s all I can promise,” Gary replied.

This thing over the 5.56×45 ammo really po’d Gary; Chris didn’t have a pot to pee in or
a window to throw it out until he (Gary) bought Chris the Mossberg, Mini-14 and used
1911. He also bought Chris 3 cases (3,000) of 5.56×45, a case of 3” 15-pellet 00 buck
(250) and a case (500) of .45 ACP. Why didn’t Dick get ammo from her or Chris tell him
he’d given some away? Ron had those 6 rifles, not counting the M1A and most of them
were 5.56×45 caliber. As far as Gary knew, Ron only had 3 cases of 5.56×45 ammo,
but maybe he was wrong.

Now, if Chris had wanted 7.62×51, Ron and he were swimming in the stuff, but the
5.56×45 was going to be a problem. Well, maybe not; those National Guard troops
didn’t seem to take the task of guarding their ammo stores very seriously Gary noticed.
What was the difference between scrounging and looting? Oh yeah, the only difference
between salvaging and looting was that looting was taking things from people who
would be returning. Well, Gary guessed they might have to loot some 5.56×45 from the
Guard.

That was an easy rationalization, too. If he had correctly interpreted the message from
Derek, maybe the National Guard wasn’t as much their friend as their keeper. Unfortu-
nately, while Gary was all in favor of scrounging, he didn’t believe in looting, so he had a
real dilemma. He’d made it a rule for years that when he was in doubt, he didn’t make a
decision. He had plenty of 5.56×45 and 7.62×51 and it could wait until he had a chance
to talk to Ron about it. The example he gave when people asked him about his attitude
was that some decisions couldn’t be avoided, like stepping on the brake when you
came to a stop sign; other decisions weren’t so urgent and usually if you gave them
time, they worked themselves out. Anyway, that sounded better than saying that he just
didn’t give a crap.

Now if she hadn’t left town to go to Denver, it wouldn’t be a problem; he’d just go buy a
couple of cases of 5.56×45 and everyone would be happy. But wait; if Dick borrowed a
case of 5.56×45 from Chris, then Dick probably needed 5.56×45 worse than Chris did.
Gary decided to go find out for himself. He walked over to Dick’s and knocked on the
door.

“Hi Gary, what’s up?” Dick asked.

“I’d like to ask a question if you wouldn’t think me too nosey Dick,” Gary said.

“No problem, want a cup of coffee?” Dick asked.

“Sure,” Gary said and entered the home. They went to the kitchen and sat down at the
breakfast bar.

90
“What do you want to know?” Dick asked.

“How are you on 5.56×45 ammo?” Gary inquired.

“I ran out Gary and had to borrow a case from Chris, why?” Dick remarked.

“No special reason, Dick; Chris was asking me for more 5.56×45 tonight,” Gary ex-
plained.

“I’m getting 4 cases tomorrow and will pay him back then,” Dick said.

“Where, if I may ask,” Gary wanted to know.

“You know the gun store over on Q?” Dick asked.

“I thought she went to Denver,” Gary shook his head.

“They started out and got turned back at Victorville by the CHP,” Dick explained.

“You know, my son told me that things might not be right with the feds. And it sounds
like its not limited to just the feds,” Gary commented.

“Well, anyway they’re back and she said they were going to sell of the rest of the inven-
tory and try again,” Dick said.

“I do a lot of business with her, could I ride along tomorrow?” Gary asked.

“Sure, be here at 9am,” Dick said.

When he got home, Gary counted his money. He had $1,000 and change. That was
enough; he’d buy 4 cases of the 5.56×45. That would give him 6,000 rounds and he
could supply Ron. Chris was getting his ammo back the next day, so he wasn’t going to
worry about Chris. He was going to ask Dick not to mention that he had purchased
more 5.56×45, though, Chris was sometimes miserly and sometimes a moocher and he
didn’t want Chris knowing he had stocked up unless it became necessary. He was will-
ing to share, but only when it was necessary. Besides, he told himself, you’ve already
shared a lot!

Gary was going to have to write Derek a letter, but that book code was cumbersome. At
least he had a Concordance to help him find most of the words he would need to use.
What he needed to know was the extent of the threat posed by the feds and how far it
extended. Did it include state governments and if so, which ones? Probably California
since the CHP had turned her back at Victorville. Did the CHP being at Victorville stop-
ping traffic mean that Damon was going to have a problem? He took his meds and went
to bed, his head still hurt like he’d been stomped by a bull.

91
°

27Feb05…

Gary was rousted out of his sleep a little after 3am. He heard the roar of a motorcycle
that seemed to stop right at their house. Then he heard the sirens. He was groggy as
hell, but he put 2 and 2 together, pulled on his pants and grabbed the closest gun, his
Winchester. He went out the front door and looked around, but couldn’t see anything.
He walked over to the sidewalk that led to the backyard and noticed that the gate was
open. He jacked a round into the Winchester and started down the sidewalk to the
backyard. When he got to the backyard, there was some biker parking his Harley. The
light bulb didn’t go off.

“Put your hands up,” Gary growled.

“Jeez, Dad, is that any way to say hi?” Damon asked.

Gary thumbed off the hammer and walked over to Damon.

“Are those sirens connected to you?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Damon said, “I ran a roadblock getting here.”

“Let me get the key and we’ll put your bike in the shed,” Gary said, “You move it over
there and I’ll be right back.”

Gary retraced his steps down the sidewalk and closed the gate. The little used padlock
was hanging on the gate, so he locked it. He went into the house and got the key to the
shed and went out the patio door. Using his miniature MagLite to see, he unlocked the
door to the shed and Damon and he manhandled the Harley into the building and
locked the door. He led Damon into the house, got a chair and opened the trap to the
garage attic in his office and told Damon to get up there and be quiet. Then, he went to
the bedroom, took off his pants, put on his robe and slippers and returned to the front
door. He walked out the door and looked around like someone would if they’d been
awakened by a disturbance during the middle of the night.

A Deputy Sheriff’s patrol car was slowly cruising down the street, shining its spots on
the homes on either side of the street. Gary just stood there, looking dumb. Damon
hadn’t left any tire marks on the street and the driveway was dry, so there was no out-
ward sign that the bike had come up the driveway. The Deputies never even slowed
down, they just shined the light in Gary’s face for a moment and continued. Gary
watched until they’d turned the corner and went back in the house. He went to his office
and called to Damon.

“You can come down now.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 19 – Police State

“Can I smoke?” Damon asked.

“Only cigarettes and only in this room or outside,” Gary said, “How the hell are you?”

“It was quite an adventure getting here,” Damon said.

“You can give me the long version when I’m feeling better,” Gary said, “How about the
capsule version?”

“Something wrong with you?” Damon asked.

“You first,” Gary insisted.

“None of the cities the whole way here were nuked, but with the lights and gas out,
things were tough,” Damon said, “Main problem was finding gas. No real trouble until I
got to Topock. Saw the CHP and troops at the agricultural station just across the border.
Waited until they got busy as hell and blew through at 100 plus. Dumped 40 and took 95
south to 62 and 62 west the Springs and 10 to Berdoo. Went north to 138 and started
across. Roadblock at the 138-18 junction was a problem and they chased me here. End
of story.”

“We had one hell of a firefight day before yesterday,” Gary said. “Matt got a graze and
Ron got a crease in his head. Ron ended up getting a pacemaker yesterday. A slug hit
a rock and the rock hit me in the head, knocking me out. Still have a headache.”

“Are you ok, though?” Damon asked.

“I have enough Vicodin ES to get over having my head amputated, so I’m ok,” Gary
smiled. “A couple of days and I’ll be fine, really. How are you doing on money?”

“I gave Mutt $5,000 to prepay the child support and it cost me about $500 to get here,
so I have just shy of 20 grand, why?” Damon asked.

“Do you suppose you could loan your poor old father 5 thousand until I get the next
money from the bank?” Gary asked.

“Sure. Did you go through the 25 thousand already? You did get the money, right?”
Damon asked.

“I got the money and it is keeping us going Damon,” Gary said, “But there were other
considerations like helping Ron and Clarence and some other people and getting some
proper armaments. So, I’m down to about $6,000.”

“Your pal Tony around looking for more money?” Damon asked.

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°

Gary couldn’t help it, and he started to laugh. He laughed until the tears were running
down his face.

“Did I say something funny?” Damon asked.

“Tony showed up all right, to pay us back,” Gary said, “But when he reached for the
money, we thought he might be going for a gun and the three of us shot him.”

“So you didn’t get in trouble?” Damon asked.

“Self-defense, with witnesses,” Gary said. “He had a gun.”

“You told me on the phone onetime that he was deathly afraid of guns,” Damon remind-
ed Gary.

“I didn’t say who’s gun he had Damon. Anyway, let it go and don’t repeat the business
about him being afraid of guns. Ok?”

“Whatever. Here’s the money, take what you need,” Damon said handing his Dad a wad
of nearly 200 $100 bills.

Gary counted out $5,000 and returned the money to Damon. “I said it was a loan Da-
mon,” Gary said, “I’ll pay you back as soon as I get the money from Charles City. How
are you fixed for armaments?”

“There’s a sawed off 870 in my saddles,” Damon said, “That’s all I want or need.”

“Need ammo?” Gary asked.

“Yeah, I only have a couple of boxes,” Damon admitted.

“You sure you don’t want a rifle or handgun?” Gary asked.

“Positive,” Damon said.

“Ok. Let’s put on some coffee and you can give me the long version,” Gary said.

“I’d rather get some sleep,” Damon said.

“Take a shower and then you can use my bed. Are you up to a suggestion?” Gary
asked.

“Go for it,” Damon said.

94
“We’ll keep the bike locked up for a few days until the heat dies down. In the meantime,
I think you ought to get a new look,” Gary explained. “No offense, but if you’d shave off
the beard and get a haircut like mine, no one would recognize you. You can let the hair
grow back out, of course.”

“Ok, I’ll shave the beard, but what do you do for barbers at 4 in the morning?” Damon
asked.

“We’ll do the haircut tomorrow, pal,” Gary said. “There’re clean clothes in the drawers
and the pants on top of my dresser in your size. You can get a shirt out of the closet. I’ll
see you around lunch time.”

Money in hand, Gary joined Dick for the trip over to her home.

“You two know each other?” she asked.

“Two houses between his and mine,” Dick answered.

“What can I do for you Dick?” she asked.

“4 cases of 5.56×45,” Dick said starting to count out the money.

“$1,000,” She said.

“You raise your prices?” Dick asked.

“Sorry.” she said and took the money and went for the ammo. She came wheeling it
back on a cart.

“Gary, what do you need?” she asked.

“4 cases of 5.56×45 and 2 cases of 7.62×51,” Gary said. “Oh, and a case of 3” 15-pellet
00 buck.”

“I have 3 cases of 5.56×45, the 7.62×51 and several cases of Remington 2¾” 12-pellet
00 buck on hand,” she said.

“Ok, I take the 3 cases of 5.56×45, 2 cases of 7.62×51 and 2 cases of the 12-pellet,”
Gary said.

“$1,500,” She said.

It was amazing how she did that. Gary counted out the money and she went after the

95
ammo, returning in a couple of minutes with a cart stacked high. Dick hauled the ammo
to the pickup for Gary. Interesting enough, Walmart had thousands of rounds of ammo,
but with martial law declared, they couldn’t sell a single round. Operating as she was,
she was out of just about everything. She had even gotten a Sheriff’s escort to move
her store stock to ‘secure storage’.

Gary asked her how she was going to get out of California. She said with the money
she had, they’d bought an H2 and fuel trailer. They were going cross-country. Gary told
her to watch out; the troops and LEO’s were out in force. She smiled at him and mum-
bled something about .50BMG API ammo and a Barrett rifle. Gary decided that he didn’t
really want to know what she’d said.

When Gary and Dick got back to the tract, Dick unloaded Gary’s ammo for him and put
it in the garage. Gary got the barber set out and the edger (small clipper) that DeWayne
used. Ron got home around 11am, but Gary decided that he was going to wait and take
Damon with him, after the haircut. Gary walked down to Chris and Patti’s and told Chris
that since Dick had replaced the 5.56×45, he wouldn’t bother Ron about it.

Gary rolled Damon out at noon, told him to come to the kitchen for his haircut. Damon
sort of gave Gary the evil eye, but complied. Yes sir, that boy looked positively human
with a butch, Gary thought. Damon went to take a shower to wash off the extra hair and
Gary told him that when he got back, they were going to see Ron.

While Damon was in the shower, Sharon made him a stack of sandwiches using lefto-
ver chicken. Out of the shower, Damon wolfed the food down like he hadn’t eaten in a
week, and he probably hadn’t. Gary led Damon down to Ron’s to show him off. He still
had to compose that message to Derek, too.

“How are you feeling?” Gary asked.

“My head hurts,” Ron complained.

“Me too,” Gary laughed, “I got beaned by a rock. Surgery go ok?”

I guess, I was asleep,” Ron laughed.

“How much 5.56×45 ammo do you have?” Gary asked.

“I have 5 cases,” Ron said, “I bought it from Walmart at $2.97 per box of 50 and have 5
full cases of 20 boxes per case.”

“That’s only $60 a case,” Gary said.

“Plus sales tax,” Ron said. He knew what Gary was getting at and he didn’t mind rub-
bing it in a little. Sometimes, Gary overlooked the obvious.

96
“And I didn’t even get kissed,” Gary mumbled.

“Hi Damon,” Ron said, “When did you get in?”

“Around 3am,” Damon replied. “Aren’t you two guys a little old to be playing Cowboys
and Indians? It sounded to me like you folks were trying to reenact Custer’s Last Stand.”

“It’s tough boy,” Ron winked, “But somebody’s got to do it.”

“I figured you guys would be outfitted with automatic weapons and stuff,” Damon said.

“In California?” Ron winced, “Your Dad has some tricked out guns that are so illegal that
he’d go to jail for years if anybody paid attention.”

“Let me put it another way Ron,” Damon said, “Would you like some automatic weap-
ons?”

“I don’t think so Damon,” Ron said. “I appreciate the offer, but we still have to live here
once this mess is straightened up.”

“Maybe I’d better tell you what my brother told me,” Damon said, “You might change
your mind. There’s a big power grab in DC according to Derek. Bush is just a figure-
head, and other people are pulling the strings. They are building relocation camps all
over the country. I’d guess I passed maybe 20 of them between Iowa and Palmdale. I
gave Dad the short version this morning and didn’t tell him what I saw. Derek said he
was going to warn you, didn’t you get the message?”

“Damon his message said ‘Bush bear false witness many die beware’,” Gary said.

“Well, now you know what it means, right?” Damon said.

“How sure are you of this information Damon?” Ron asked.

“Sure enough that I gave Mutt $5,000 and told her to get the kids out of Iowa and into
the woods in Minnesota,” Damon said.

“What do you think Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“We’ll take all you can get, Damon, including M16’s, M203’s, grenades, mortars, Clay-
more mines, magazines and ammo.”

“I won’t be much help Gary,” Ron said, “But good luck.

97
 Preparations – Chapter 20 – “Shopping”

When they got back to the house, Damon told Gary that he was going to sleep days and
‘shop’ nights. In the meantime, they had better figure out where they were going to store
the ‘merchandise’ he ‘bought’. Gary said something about tunneling under the patio
slab, but Damon told him that was too obvious. If he was going to risk his butt stealing
from the National Guard, they had better come up with something clever.

At least the bedroom situation would work out fine, Damon and Gary could more or less
hot bunk the bed in the master bedroom. This business of finding someplace to store
the goods was going to be a problem. They could go underground, into an attic or what
else? Gary started to think back on all of the fiction he’d written. Had he ever had a
good idea about hiding guns and munitions from prying eyes that they could actually
implement? Come to think of it, he had, but how in the hell were they going to do that?

In the very first story that Gary had written he had come up with an interesting way to
hide a gun collection. It was the old ‘secret room’ gag, but it had been medium slick. It
involved moveable front and back bars in a living room. The idea was that the front bar
pulled out from the wall creating a front and back bar. The trick had been to make the
back bar slide on the same tracks as the front bar. Releasing two latches had allowed
the characters to pull the back bar forward, revealing a medium sized gunroom that had
been built by partitioning off a portion of a large adjoining room. The way the houses in
this tract were build that might be hard to do. In another story set in this very housing
tract, Gary had done a trick with the linen closet, but even that had been a little obvious.
And, of course, he’d tunneled under his patio a couple of times too, but some critic had
pointed out that someone down in Orange County or somewhere had done that very
thing and gotten caught.

But there was the answer, right in front of him the entire time. The Patio gag was a good
start, but a little too obvious. Underground was the key, but under the house, not the
slab. As far as access to the underground room, the linen closet gag gave him an idea.
Why not a linen cabinet that looked built-in but could be lifted up and moved? He knew
just who to ask and headed to Dick’s.

“Forget something Gary?’ Dick asked.

“No, but I’ve come across some startling information and I realized that I need to install
a floor safe. Could I borrow you for maybe ten minutes?” Gary asked.

“I can spare 10 minutes for you, where are we going?” Dick asked.

“My house, I need your advice and maybe your help,” Gary said.

“What do you have in mind?” Dick inquired.

“I’d like to convert my lower linen closet from a built-in to a cabinet that we could lift out

98
Dick,” Gary explained. “I know you’ve done some wood working and have lots of power
equipment and I’d be willing to pay you cash money for the help. I only offer because it
would be a lot of work and it wouldn’t be fair not to pay for your time.”

“I could use a little cash, that ammo today put a big dent in my savings,” Dick said.

By this time, they were at Gary and Sharon’s. Gary led Dick down the hall and showed
him the linen closet. It was an overhead cabinet and a separate base cabinet. The cabi-
nets were stand-alone units that had been permanently installed much like kitchen cabi-
nets. Dick inspected the cabinets and then turned to Gary.

“This strip of wood here is what keeps the cabinets in place, Gary,” Dick explained, “I
can do what you want, in about a day. Would $100 be too much for the work?”

“Sounds fair to me,” Gary said, “When could you start?”

“I can pull the cabinet today, work on it in the shop tonight and put it back in tomorrow,”
Dick said.

“Ok, we’ll empty the lower cabinet while you’re gone and you can start when you want,”
Gary said.

“It will be about an hour,” Dick said, “See you later.”

After Dick had gone, Gary explained to Sharon that he need to empty the lower linen
closet for a few days and asked if she minded if he put the contents on one of the tables
in her sewing room. That was okay with her, if it didn’t go on a long time, she said. He
told her it might take several days, and he was sorry for the inconvenience. Surprised
that he was being so considerate, she even helped him empty the cabinet.

Dick was back in about an hour and had the cabinet out about an hour after that. This
was going to be easier than Dick first thought. Meanwhile Gary had gone down to
Chris’s and asked if he could borrow Chris’s ½” drill motor and a masonry bit. Chris
loaned Gary the drill motor and a ½” bit. Gary hung a sheet over the opening to keep
down the dust and marked out an 18” by 24” rectangle on the floor centered on the
space. He then started to drill holes through the concrete. The darned bit was pretty dull
and Gary tracked down David and asked him if he would go to H & E and pick up a
couple of new ½” bits.

Gary enlisted David and his 4 boys to help him with the project and they worked through
the night. The noise upset Sharon a little but she didn’t complain that loudly. By the time
Dick was back the next morning, they were tired, but the rectangle had been drilled out
and only needed the concrete between the drill holes chiseled out. Chris’s drill motor
hadn’t been the ideal tool, one of those that hammered would have been better, but it
didn’t really matter.

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Damon had been out that night and had returned with 2 M16A2’s, one with and one
without the M203. He had 14 magazines, fully loaded, and 8 of the M406 40mm gre-
nades. He also had 4 M67 fragmentation grenades and 1 AT-4. Gary asked Damon to
put the stuff in the attic over his office for now. Damon noticed them working on the floor
but didn’t say anything. Damon had something to eat, took a shower and went to bed.

Dick left the cabinet in the living room and Gary gave him $100. Dick said he’d come
back and install the cabinet when they were ready. By 10am they had the concrete bro-
ken up and hauled to the vacant field across Avenue R and strewn about. All of the
holes had been drilled outside the line. Gary asked David to pick up a trowel and one
bag of premixed concrete or send one of the boys. Gary needed a nap and they could
resume tomorrow morning. They vacuumed up the mess and set the cabinet in place. It
was heavy, but easily fit into the space. Once in place, there was no evidence that any-
thing had changed.

01Mar05…

The natural gas had come back on during the night. Dick came over and switched the
jets for them back to natural gas. Since they had set the cabinet back in place, he of-
fered to refund half of the money Gary had given him but Gary told him to keep the
money and forget he’d done the work. Dick understood Gary’s message perfectly. Gary
called AmeriGas and asked to have his tank and Ron’s tank filled. Edison didn’t have
the electricity up, yet. Gary called the bank and learned his $5,000 deposit was in and
they had enough cash, so he asked Sharon to pick up the money, please.

Gary sent David to H & E to pick up 6 adjustable support columns sometimes used in
home construction and 6 more bags of premixed concrete. He got the 4 boys to take
turns digging out the dirt in the hole and spreading it around the field to the north. He
decided to send a message to Derek in the clear. It said “10+4”

The further they dug, the faster it went. By evening, they had a hole that was 8’ deep
and about 3’ square. Gary sat David down and explained that he wanted a support post
every 4’ sitting on a 1’ square by 2’ deep footing. David had read the instructions on the
bag of Sackrete and told Gary he thought it would take at least 2 bags per hole.

Gary wanted a room constructed under the slab about 8’ square. Gary calculated that
would require 9 posts and 18 bags of the Sackrete. Gary asked David to pick up 3 more
posts and 12 more bags of Sackrete the next day. He told David to also pick up some
¾” plywood that was cut into 2’ wide by 8’ long pieces; 10 sheets or 20 pieces would be
enough.

At the end of the day they cleaned up the mess, vacuumed the carpet and set the cabi-
net back in place. When Damon got up, they talked it over. Damon could go out again
tonight, but then, he was to take a day or two off. Gary didn’t want any pattern to get es-
tablished that might expose Damon to too much risk. He asked Damon how he was
pulling this thing off.

100
“Very carefully Dad,” Damon answered. “Let’s just say I turned mugger and let it go at
that. Ok?”

“Just don’t be predictable,” Gary said, “You get in a rut and you’re going to get dead real
quick.”

“You know, with this curfew, they tend to get lax late at night, so I picked a couple guys
out last night and just waited until one of them was half asleep and the other wasn’t pay-
ing much attention and well, they’re going to be the laughing stock of their units for a
while. What did you come up with for a storage place?”

“Under the linen cabinet,” Gary said.

Damon walked down the hall to the linen cabinet and looked. Nothing seemed out of the
ordinary to him. He opened the cabinet and it was empty. Then he tried to rock the cab-
inet and it just sat there like a cabinet was supposed to.

“Neat,” Damon said when he got back to the kitchen.

“Takes 2 people to move the cabinet, but it’s an unlikely place,” Gary said. “We’re going
to start out 8’x8’x8’ and line it with plywood. We’re putting in a post every 4’ to support
the slab. And, I’m going to have David pick up some beams to support the slab too, I
think. Can’t have the house collapsing.”

“How much longer to get it done?” Damon asked.

“Couple of days,” his dad answered.

“I’m going to take the night off, then,” Damon said. “I’m going out, but just to scout.”

“How is Derek holding up with what he told you?” Gary asked.

“Dad, I’ve never seen him so po’d,” Damon said. “If they try and make him do anything
that goes against his grain too badly, he’ll just chuck it all and bring Mary and the kids
out here. He got your email about the guns and said he wasn’t going to get any .45’s.

“Got himself a pair of Glock 20’s and a bunch of those high capacity mags. He also
bought 2 AR-15’s and had a buddy swap out the lower receivers or something. Ended
up with 2 M16A2’s. And then, he bought 2 SA-58’s and a whole bunch of 7.62×51 am-
mo. Got that gun dealer buddy of his to ignore the waiting periods, too. I wasn’t there
long enough to see what else he was doing, but it looks to me like he’s about ready to
bug-out when he gets po’d enough.”

“Well, if things are the way you two say they are, I hope he gets here ok,” Gary ob-
served.

101
“The Army trained him good, Dad,” Damon smiled, “He’ll be ok.”

“You be careful out there tonight,” Gary said.

Gary went back down to check on Ron. At least his headache was simmering down and
he’d only had to take a single Vicodin ES twice that day.

“How are you feeling Ron?” Gary asked.

“I’m sore, but my head hurts worse than my chest,” Ron explained. “Can I get some Vi-
codin from you?”

“Gee, I don’t know pal, I’m down to my last 200 pills,” Gary laughed. “How many do you
want?”

“A small handful,” Ron said.

“Let me run down and get them and come back,” Gary said, “I want to talk to you.”

Gary went home, counted out 30 of the pills and returned to Ron’s.

“Jeez,” Ron said, “I said a small handful.”

“Damon says Derek is about ready to bug-out and head this way,” Gary commented.
“For him to be thinking that way, this thing must be getting pretty serious. It also sounds
like Derek is armed to the teeth.”

“I’ll do what I can to help Gar-Bear, but I’m not going to be much use to you,” Ron said
regretfully. “I can load magazines and stuff, but no exertion. Oh, do me a favor, would
you? Get me my M1A from the closet.”

Gary got the rifle.

“You take the rifle, mags and LBE with you, Gary,” Ron said, “They’re yours. You can
get the ammo as you need it.”

“I can’t take this rifle!” Gary exclaimed.

“Would you rather it just sit in the closet and rust?” Ron asked. “The day/night scope is
yours anyway. I still have all those 5.56×45’s and the binoculars you gave me. I’ll just
get myself set up in that upstairs bedroom in an easy chair and keep watch. I’ll be on
USB, channel 31.”

Gary was flabbergasted. He got Ron’s LBE and returned home with the rifle and the
equipment. He guessed Ron must have a feather… Anyway, he was tickled to beat hell,

102
although, if he had his druthers, Ron would be right out there with him and Clarence
fighting the good fight. This whole thing stunk to high heaven. If Bush wasn’t running the
country, then who the hell was? Then Gary noticed something; the streetlights were
back on. Well, Edison had come through after all. Good, AmeriGas had put him off until
tomorrow on the tank refill anyway.

103
 Preparations – Chapter 21 – A Change in Plans

02Mar05…

Gary didn’t hear Damon come in and take his shower. In fact, he didn’t hear anything
until Damon shook him to wake him. Damon wanted to go to bed and Gary got up, went
to the john and headed for his office. He noticed the cabinet sitting in the hall and David
and the boys working on the hole. Sharon brought him some coffee and he had his first
smoke so he’d feel a little human. At least his head didn’t hurt so badly today; he decid-
ed to just take extra-strength Tylenol instead of the Vicodin ES. When he was awake,
he asked David to come to the office.

“We’re going to need more support for the slab, I think,” Gary said. “How about picking
up some 2”x12”x8’ and some 4”x6”x8’ lumber at H & E or someplace? Sharon can give
you some money.”

“I can do that,” David said, “We should have this hole dug out in a couple of more days.
If that ground wasn’t like concrete, we’d finish sooner, but you know what the soil is like
around here.”

“Just be sure you spread the dirt out good David,” Gary said, “We don’t want to be ad-
vertising that we’re putting in an underground gun safe.”

“Did you talk to Damon this morning?” David asked.

“No, why?” Gary responded.

“He came back with 4 M16A2’s and bunch of web gear and stuff,” David explained.

“Huh, he said he was just going to scout last night,” Gary remarked. “I’d better get him
to take a night off. We can’t have an attic full of stolen military gear.”

“They stepped up the patrols, too,” David said. “I was talking to Matt and he said that
the National Guard had been by about once every half hour.”

“Then you guys be really, really careful disposing of that dirt,” Gary cautioned.

“I think that I’d better get some extra stuff at H & E,” David said, “I’ve got a feeling that
we’re going to end up not being able to travel much.”

Gary turned on KTPI to see what news was coming out. According to the announcer,
federal personnel had finally entered Los Angeles and the death toll was much higher
than originally feared. It seemed that the President was finally going to address the na-
tion that night at 9pm eastern, 6pm local. It was about time! Usually the President was
on the air minutes or hours after a disaster, but this time, they hadn’t heard anything for
what, 16 days? Speaking of which, when were they supposed to go to Stater Brothers

104
again? Gary had sort of lost track of things since the big firefight. “Must be today,” he
thought, “We last went on the 24th.”

Actually, Sharon had already made the trip to Stater Brothers. It was pretty slim pickings
and she’d ended up just buying diapers, tp, and instant milk plus whatever there was on
the shelves that she could use; mostly pastas, sauces and the like. They didn’t have
any meat in the store at all. She did manage to get a 25# bag of flour, though and some
yeast. Prices had inched higher too, she noticed. They used to joke about getting $100
worth of food in a couple of shopping bags, especially when they bought meat. Well,
she had $100 worth of items and were it not for the diapers, tp and bag of flour she
could have carried everything in one paper bag. There sure seemed to be a lot of Na-
tional Guard people in town Jeremy said.

Gary got the M1A that Ron had given him and checked it over. It looked to him like he
could take the suppressor off his standard M1A and fit it to Ron’s rifle. He could put the
flashhider off the Super Match on the standard and have himself one Jim Dandy snip-
er’s rifle in the Super Match. Gary was going to have to find someone to use the rifle; he
surely wasn’t up to hiking all over the country. These last 2 weeks had been a real bear
and Gary was really feeling his age. He decided to take a shower, get dressed and go
visit Ron, and then Clarence.

Gary put the $5,000 that he had borrowed from Damon in an envelope and put it on
Damon’s jeans where he was sure to find it. He stood in the shower a little longer than
normal enjoying the luxury of not needing to cut the shower short to preserve propane.
He looked in the mirror as he brushed his teeth. That was a nasty looking bruise where
the rock had hit him. And he had bags under his eyes that you could park a truck in. He
hated to shave and hadn’t since Valentine’s Day. At least nobody had made any wise-
crack about him ‘trying’ to grow a beard. He didn’t think that anyone cared about things
like that anymore.

Gary dressed in some clean jeans and a golf shirt. He sure wished he could wear his
Laredo boots, but his feet hurt too badly. It was sneakers or sandals and it was winter
so sneakers were his only choice. Was he losing weight? That paunch seemed to be
disappearing. He strapped on the Vaquero, got a cup of coffee from the kitchen and
headed to Ron’s. Linda told him Ron and Clarence were upstairs in the ‘observation
room’.

“Morning guys,” Gary greeted them.

“Gary, how are you feeling?” Clarence asked.

“About like I was rode hard and put up wet Clarence,” Gary said, “How is that new med-

105
icine working out?”

“I feel a lot better Gary,” Clarence answered, “Thanks for asking.”

“How are you today Ronald?” Gary asked.

“My head still hurts a little, but a little better, maybe,” Ron answered. “You do sort of
look like you were rode hard and put up wet.”

“I switched the suppressor off my standard M1A to your Super Match, Ron, but I think
I’m going to have to find someone else to use the rifle; I’m just not up to it,” Gary ex-
plained.

“That’s your Super Match now, partner, so you do what you see fit,” Ron said with a
tone in his voice.

“David said that Damon came back dragging some more military equipment,” Gary re-
ported. “I thought he was just going to scout last night, but there must have been a
change in plans. Sharon said that there wasn’t much at Stater brothers either and that
the Guard seemed to be out in force.”

“I’ve been watching Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “They’re coming by about every half hour with
one of those Hummers with a machine gun and a truck full of troops.”

“I heard on the radio that Bush is supposed to address the nation at 6pm,” Gary said.

“It’s about time,” Ron said.

“The announcer also said that they finally got into LA,” Gary continued, “And the death
toll was higher than anticipated.”

“What about the other cities?” Clarence asked.

“Not a word about them Clarence,” Gary said. “It’s some kind of a news blackout in my
opinion.”

“My, my,” Clarence murmured.

“So, once we get all of the military hardware Gar-Bear, what are we going to do with it?”
Ron inquired.

“I really don’t know Ron, store it until we come up with a plan, I guess,” Gary comment-
ed, “One thing for sure, we don’t want to conduct any operations anywhere in the vicini-
ty of Moon Shadows. We need to keep a low profile. Other than the guards up at the
entrance, I think we should pretend to be sheeple.”

106
“That ought to go over real good with this crowd,” Ron laughed. “Chris was about the
only liberal left in the tract and with Matt getting shot, I’d bet that he’s totally converted.”

“Could be, but he’s still a miser and a moocher,” Gary laughed.

“Don’t be so hard on the boy, Gary,” Clarence said, “He’s just Chris and you take what
you get.”

“Did they put in any more foxholes?” Gary asked.

“Two more on each side Gar,” Ron said, but if the Guard decided to rush this place,
we’d be up a creek.”

“That’s why I said we should be acting like sheeple Ron,” Gary explained, “We don’t
want to give them a reason. I’m putting in a new gun safe to store all of the military
hardware. It should be done in a couple of days.”

“Under the patio?” Clarence asked.

“Nope, I think I came up with a better idea this time,” Gary said, “But only time will tell.”

This idea of acting like sheeple was going to be a bitter pill. None of the three men were
used to backing down from trouble when it came their way, especially Ron. The three of
them sat around and visited for a while and then Gary saw David pull in and decided to
go home and see how he’d done at H & E. He bade Ron and Clarence goodbye and
walked home. David and his boys were busy unloading the lumber from the back of his
van.

“This was the last trip Gary,” David said, “The National Guard was there taking names
and writing down everything everyone was buying.”

“No problem David, I think we have enough to complete the project,” Gary replied.
“How’s it going?”

David walked over to the entrance to the new storage area and called down.

“Josh, how is it going?”

Josh climbed the 4-step ladder and came out of the hole.

“Dad, I think we are ready to put in some of the bracing,” he said, “The room is about
half done.”

“Gary, I think we’ll work all night on this and try to finish it up,” David said.

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“What are you going to do with the dirt?” Gary asked.

“You always wanted a garden spot behind the shed, right?” David smiled.

“I guess so,” Gary said. Why not, the grass didn’t grow back there anyway. Gary’s
sprinkler system had gotten screwed up at one time and it was bare ground anyway. It
would have been nice to have some steer manure to mix with the dirt; Gary wondered if
they dared risk a trip to Walmart. Maybe it was worth a try.

“Do you feel up to making a trip to Walmart David?” Gary asked.

“I suppose, why?” David asked back.

“Pick up a few bags of steer manure to mix in with the dirt,” Gary explained. “It will make
it more convincing and we really can plant a garden when it warms up.”

“Do you have any seeds?” David asked.

“There are 6 #10 cans in the refrigerator in the garage, David,” Gary said. “Each can is
a complete seed pack, so yes, I have seeds.”

“Where did you get those?” David asked.

“Walton Feed,” Gary said. “On second thought, get all the steer manure you can haul,
we’ll plant the whole backyard come spring.”

“Planning ahead?” David asked.

“Sharon couldn’t get much at Stater Brothers today, so I’d have to say yes,” Gary an-
swered. “It never hurts to prepare a little.”

“I’ve been wondering about something,” David said. “Since the feds were able to get in-
to LA and the utilities are back up, why haven’t they been moving the refugees back to
the San Fernando Valley?”

“I don’t know David,” Gary mused, “That might be the $64 question. Maybe we’ll find out
something at 6pm tonight when Bush addresses the nation on radio. Something is going
on and it’s not right. That’s why we’re digging the hole under the house and Damon is
out ‘shopping’. I know that Derek is pretty concerned. Damon says Derek is about ready
to bug-out and head to California, so that should tell you something.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 22 – Prepare ye the way of the Lord

After David left for Walmart, Gary went into the office and checked his email. He had a
message from Derek. It was in the book code, but this time Gary didn’t have to look up
the translation, he immediately recognized the passage because of his love for the old
Rock Opera Godspell. The message was 2+1+3+3. The problem was that Gary wasn’t
sure what the message meant. The passage was from the 3rd Chapter of Matthew, and
it was the entire 3rd Verse, “For this was He that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias,
saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make
his paths straight.” Maybe Damon would know; Gary would ask him when he woke up.

Gary had a peanut butter sandwich and some Fritos for lunch and David was back by
the time he’d finished.

“How did you do?” Gary asked.

“Bought them out, but it wasn’t much,” David said, “Apparently a lot of people are plan-
ning on gardens this year. It was a good thing you had seed, too. There wasn’t a single
package of seed on the shelves.”

How many bags did you get?” Gary asked.

“31,” David said.

“Good. Look, I’d better wake up Damon, I got a somewhat cryptic message from Derek,”
Gary said.

Gary shook Damon awake and told him he had a message from Derek. Would Damon
get around and come to the office, please? Damon was in the office like a flash. He
looked at the message and then checked the properties of the message to see exactly
when it had been sent.

“I got to get around and go, Dad,” Damon said.

“What’s this Prepare ye the way of the Lord, crap?” Gary asked.

“Derek is on his way. I have to meet him in Needles,” Damon said.

“Slow down and explain it to me,” Gary insisted.

“Ok. Derek got a buddy to cut him 2 sets of phony orders, transferring him to California,”
Damon started. “He’s going to rip a Humvee and fuel trailer and he and Mary and the
kids are coming across country, disguised as a two people being transferred to Califor-
nia. She’s going to be a widowed Captain with 2 kids and he’s going to be her driver. I’m
supposed to be the representative from her new post waiting to meet them and escort
them to the post.”

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“How are you going to manage all of that?” Gary asked.

“I stole and stashed a hummer last night Dad,” Damon said. “I have a SSgt uniform and
everything I need, plus a fake military ID, courtesy of Derek.”

“I wanted to ask you about that Damon,” Gary said, “I thought you were just going
scouting last night.”

“I’m a great scout Dad, and you know our motto, right?” Damon smirked.

“What, Be Prepared?” Gary asked.

“Exactly. I’m just a chip off the old blockhead,” Damon said.

“Get going, I want to see my grandkids,” Gary said.

“Gary, we’re going to need some sort of permanent ladder into the room,” David said.

“Go get Chris’s extension ladder and cut it down to size,” Gary said. “If he gives you any
crap, tell him to come see me for some 5.56×45 ammo.”

Five minutes later, Chris was knocking on the door.

“I understand you need my ladder,” Chris said.

“Yeah,” Gary replied.

“It will cost you a case of ammo,” Chris said.

“We only need ½ of the ladder, so I’ll only give you ½ case of ammo,” Gary countered.

“But the ladder isn’t any good without both halves,” Chris protested.

“Yeah right, you’re going to paint your house this week and need the ladder,” Gary said,
“Take it or leave it Chris. That’s $125 worth of ammo for half of a $60 ladder.”

“I’ll take it,” Chris said. (It was a used ladder someone had given him.)

“I thought so,” Gary dryly remarked. (Gary knew about the ladder.)

Gary was pretty excited about Derek being on the way to California and he walked
down to tell Ronald. Ronald was asleep in his easy chair in front of the window. Gary
turned to leave and…

110
“Where the hell are you going?” Ron rumbled, “You just got here.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you,” Gary mumbled.

“I wasn’t sleeping Gar-Bear, what’s up?” Ron remarked.

“Derek is on his way to California,” Gary gushed.

“How the hell is he going to pull that one off?” Ron quizzed.

“Damon and he have some elaborate scheme worked out,” Gary said, “But I think it is
risky.”

“Don’t sell them short Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “From what I hear that Derek is pretty
sharp.”

“Damon isn’t the jerk he pretends to be either,” Gary said, “He said he was scouting last
night, but I think he was actually getting ready for the stunt. Anyway, just wanted you to
know.”

“How is the hole coming?” Ron asked.

“What hole?” Gary asked.

“The hole you’re digging under your house,” Ron said.

“Where did you get the idea I was digging a hole under the house?” Gary asked.

“Well, it was about the only thing you hadn’t done in your stories,” Ron remarked.

“I thought you didn’t read my stories,” Gary said.

“Are you kidding?” Ron laughed, “I wanted to see how badly you portrayed me.”

“And?” Gary said.

“I guess that I don’t have any secrets,” Ron shook his head.

“You’ll have to remember, we’ve had our act on the road since 1995,” Gary said, “I just
listened and kept track. Sometimes you even told the same story twice.”

“Is Damon leaving in broad daylight?” Ron asked.

“Just watch for the NCO walking towards the gate Ron,” Gary said, “It will be Damon.”

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“Are you coming over here to listen to the address?” Ron asked.

“Might as well, Sharon doesn’t want to listen to it,” Gary said. “See you about 10
minutes before 6.”

Gary wasn’t too worried about having the hole under the house. First they had to sus-
pect him before they would do anything. And, although they could probably find the hole
with ground penetrating radar, they’d have to have a reason to look. It was like the thing
about the generator. He could get an Onan and he couldn’t get the Generac. The gen-
erator worked just fine anyway. Ground penetrating radar didn’t concern him one bit. If it
got to the point that they were searching to that extent, he was probably toast anyway.
Where did anyone get the idea that the government was going to observe civil liberties
in the middle of a crisis? Crap, they’d just kick in your door and arrest you if they sus-
pected anything, and that meant anything!

All those Executive Orders and things like the USA Patriot Act had virtually stripped the
citizens in the US of most of their civil liberties anyway. Take that stupid Supreme Court
case about the Pledge of Allegiance for example. The court hadn’t really decided the
case, they’d just found that the guy lacked standing, meaning that he didn’t have the
right to sue on behalf of the child. That begged the question, now didn’t it? All because
they’d left the word God out of the Constitution. The first 2 sentences of the Declaration
of Independence were clear:

When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve
the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the
powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of
nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that
they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident:

That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain un-
alienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that, to
secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers
from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes de-
structive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute
new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in
such form, as to them shall seem most likely to affect their safety and happiness.

Gee, there was God and Creator, right together. And, what was that business about,
that to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, DERIVING THEIR
JUST POWERS FROM THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED? Somewhere in the
whole process people had forgotten their past and those who forgot the past were con-
demned to repeat it. Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these

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ends, IT IS THE RIGHT OF THE PEOPLE TO ALTER OR TO ABOLISH IT, and to insti-
tute new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers
in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to affect their safety and happiness.”
Yep, that’s what the Declaration of Independence said!

Gary was in the mood for some corned beef hash for supper and if Amy wasn’t good, he
was going to kick his daughter’s butt. His email address was still the same,
gdott@sbcglobal.net and anyone with a really good idea could always send him an
email, now couldn’t they? And, they didn’t even need to use the Bible code.

It was getting late and it was about time to head down to Ron’s to listen to what Bush
had to say. Somehow, he had a sneaking suspicion that it was mostly going to be un-
true. If Derek were right, that wouldn’t necessarily be Dubya’s fault, either. He’d have to
listen very carefully to see if there were any hidden messages in the speech. Maybe if
Bush were being forced to say things that he didn’t want to say, he’d do like the Vietnam
POW’s and send a message. One guy had sent a message by blinking his eyes in
Morse code. That sure as hell wasn’t John Kerry either.

It was almost funny; between Bush and Kerry, they’d spent about $300 million trying to
get elected. And, most of that money went to smear each other. Why didn’t they both
just stand up and make an announcement that, “the other candidate is a butthead” and
spend the money on something worthwhile like a new school or something?

Linda told Gary Ron and Clarence were still in the ‘observation room’ and that she’d
bring up some coffee in a minute.

“Hey Gary,” Clarence said, “Good to see you.”

“Howdy partner,” Ron echoed.

“Well are we ready for this?” Gary asked. “Listen for any hidden messages guys, if Bush
is doing this against his own will, he might try to tell the public in some way.”

“Do you really believe that he’s not in power, Gary?” Clarence asked.

“I really don’t know what to think anymore Clarence,” Gary said, “We could anticipate al-
Qaeda doing what they did, assuming it was al Qaeda, but for the government not to get
into those cities sooner is unbelievable. And not moving the refugees back to the San
Fernando Valley really makes me wonder what is really going on. Why did they try to
stop her and her husband from going to Denver? I sure hope that they made it the sec-
ond time in that H2 she bought. And, why would Derek be bugging out and coming
here, of all places, unless something was really, really wrong?”

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 Preparations – Chapter 23 – The Speech

“You just said really 4 times in the last 4 sentences,” Ron laughed.

“Really?” Gary asked.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the United States,” the announcer said.

My fellow Americans, Bush began.

On February 14th this country was viciously attacked by forces of a foreign nation or na-
tions. Some would have you believe that this attack was perpetrated by al Qaeda and
those answering to the terrorist, Osama bin Laden. At first your government operated
under that presumption, but arrests of several persons believed to be responsible for
these terrible acts has now led your government to believe that others were responsible.

Your government now believes the actions to be the work of separatists who would di-
vide this country and destroy its government. As a result, martial law was declared and
FEMA relocation camps are being set up around the country. Your government will seek
out and incarcerate those responsible. You government asks only your cooperation in
this effort.

Some of you may have wondered why your government did not enter the 6 cities at-
tacked with nuclear weapons sooner. The simple truth is that your government was not
prepared for an attack of this magnitude. Much of the equipment needed to enter the
cities and rescue the injured was destroyed in those very attacks. Perhaps some of you
know of the rule of sevens. Radioactivity decays at a predicable rate and in 7 times 7
times 7 hours, that’s 343 hours, radioactivity decays to a point where it is safe to enter a
bombed area. You government determined that it was necessary to wait those 14 and a
fraction days.

Some of you may also be wondering why refugees have not been returned to their
homes. Your government has determined that these refugees include large numbers of
the very separatists who would divide this country and destroy its government. Conse-
quently, your government has refrained from allowing the refugees to return until the
separatists can be identified and removed from their ranks.

The pipelines and electrical substations destroyed by the separatists have been re-
paired and all of you should now have natural gas, water and electricity. To prevent fur-
ther attacks by these separatist elements in our society, your government has found it
necessary to implement several controls.

One. Travel will be restricted to a 20-mile radius from your home.

Two. The powers of the Federal Emergency Management Agency have been extended
to include full police powers.

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Three. Internet communications and telephone communications are being fully moni-
tored by your government.

Four. Posse Comitatus is hereby suspended.

Five. The Writ of Habeas Corpus is hereby suspended.

Six. Commencing immediately, all food will be rationed by your government.

My fellow Americans, I had a revelation on the 6th and 8th days of this crisis. The great-
est danger to American is not from without, but from within. Your government is working
to restore order, and requests your continued cooperation.

Good Night.

“Huh,” Clarence said, “What do you make of that?”

“Bush is a prisoner and except for a single line or two, that speech was contrived,” Gary
said.

“What do you mean partner?” Ron asked.

“In the first place, it was always ‘your government’ and not I,” Gary said. “He only used I
one time in that speech. Hmm, I wonder. Ron do you have a Bible handy?”

“Sure. Lyn,” Ron shouted, “Bring me a Bible.”

“In the second place, the speech reeked,” Gary continued, “There were several obvious
lies.”

“Here you go Ron,” Linda said, handing Ron the Bible.”

“What do you want me to do with this Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“Look up Revelations, uh Chapter 6, uh Verse 8,” Gary said. “He did say ‘I had a revela-
tion on the 6th and 8th days of this crisis’, didn’t he?”

“That’s right, Gary,” Clarence confirmed.

“Here you go guys,” Ron said, “And I looked, and behold, a pale horse: and his name
that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them
over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger and with death, and
with the beasts of the earth.”

“Holy crap,” Clarence said.

115
“Any doubt in anyone’s mind now?” Gary asked. “I’d say that there has been a coup. I
don’t know if it happened as a result of the attacks or the attacks were just part of the
coup; but, I am convinced there was a coup.”

“This isn’t one of those TSHTF deals Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “This is TEOTWAWKI,”

“Only if we let it be Ronald,” Gary replied.

“What are three old men, two with bad hearts and one with serious diabetes going to do
to change it?” Ron asked.

“Everything we can partner,” Gary smiled. “The gloves are off. Bush said it once in his
first term, something to the effect that you’re for us or against us, or something like that
(Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or
you are with the terrorists.). Derek’s splitting proves the point as far as I’m concerned.
When he realized that evil was in charge, he got out. The rest of these National Guard
troops have the same choice, as far as I’m concerned.”

“That’s pretty harsh isn’t it?” Clarence asked.

“You’re always saying that Clarence,” Gary said. “Darn it. It’s black and white. There
aren’t any shades of gray any more. You are either a Patriot or you’re not. You are ei-
ther for Freedom or you’re against it. It is one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty
and justice for all.”

“Where do we start?” Ron asked quietly.

“We start by acting like sheeple in the light and like lions in the dark,” Gary said.

“How do you propose to do that Gary,” Clarence asked.

“Wait for my boys to get here,” Gary said, “Then we will start. In the meantime, keep
your guns loaded and your powder dry.”

Actually, Gary had several ideas in mind, including a trip to Fountain Valley, CA. A
company named Surefire had its offices there. Most people thought of lights when they
thought of Surefire. Gary thought of the Surefire M4FA, a can, or if you prefer, a sup-
pressor. Intended for use on the M-4 Carbine, the can also fit nicely on an M16 and the
FA referred to Fast Attach.

Brought out in 2003 or 2004, Gary couldn’t remember, the can reduced sound by 30db.
More importantly, it had a guaranteed life of 30,000 rounds. How many barrels could
last for 30,000 rounds? Of course, there were the other Surefire products too, and they
would play an important part in his plans, but Gary envisioned a rapid strike force,
equipped with all kinds of exotic things like the military night vision equipment, etc. He

116
had Surefire suppressors on some of his rifles and they worked as advertised.

If they could put together a small force of skilled operators, they could go sneaking
around the Valley, the state and perhaps later, even the nation. It probably wouldn’t be
easy, but Gary figured that some of those smart folks who realized that the government
wasn’t doing what it should be doing and bolted from the Guard in disgust might be
possible candidates. That was going to be up to Derek and Damon. Ron, Clarence and
he were just going to do what they could to support the small force.

With any kind of luck, the boys and Derek’s family should be in Palmdale within 24
hours. Gary had driven from Iowa to Palmdale non-stop more than once. If Derek had
driven straight through, he should already be in Arizona, assuming everything went
okay. Maybe in the morning, the family would be fully reassembled. Gary saw his
neighbor Dave backing out of the driveway.

“You take care Gary, I won’t be back for a while,” Dave said.

“Oh, where are you headed?” Gary asked.

“Dana asked me to get her and the girls out of California,” Dave answered.

“How long will you be gone?” Gary asked.

“It could be months, “Dave said, “Or I might not be back at all.”

“Dave, my son and his wife are arriving tomorrow and…” Gary started to ask.

Dave turned off the car, took the house key off the ring and handed it to Gary.

“Just keep the place clean,” Dave said, restarting the car and pulling out before Gary
could even say thanks.

Dave lived in a very nicely kept 2-story home just like the homes Ron and Clarence
lived in. Fortunately Sharon and Amy had crossed swords one too many times, again,
Amy and her brood had moved in with Lorrie and David; that was another 2-story home
with lots of room. Gary was getting ready to boot Damon out of his bedroom into the
spare bedroom, just as soon as Damon got back from Needles.

Of course, there was Murphy’s Law to consider, but Derek and especially Damon were
on a first name basis with Mr. Murphy and if anyone could pull this stunt off, it would be
those two. Damon’s IQ was about the same as Gary’s (none of your business) but
Derek was the really smart one with an IQ of 168 and all the common sense in the world
to go with those brains.

Damon was more like his Dad, not stupid but short as hell on common sense at times.
Gary’s only saving grace was that he had done everything wrong at least once and had,

117
until recently, a very good memory. Gary may have lost his edge, but he made up for it
in other ways. Tony had been a good teacher, rest his soul, he had taught Gary all
about conniving and lying and cheating your best friend out of his last dollar if that’s
what it took to get along. “Nice guy that Tony,” Gary thought, “I wonder whatever be-
came of the body? Maybe it’s at the dump with the rest of the trash.”

If Palmdale hadn’t turned into such a little police state, it would have been a nice place
to live. The problem was that the Guard was out in force and so many people were un-
employed that they were being forced to seek assistance from the government, just like
the refugees from the Los Angeles area. Gary had talked to some of the folks who ven-
tured out of the housing tract and they were telling how more and more homes were
empty and how more and more people were in the refugee camps. Had those refugee
camps become relocations centers? If so, KTPI hadn’t said anything about it. Come to
think about it, KTPI wasn’t talking about much anymore. It was a country western station
and before Valentine’s Day, most of the airtime was music. After that, for about 10 days,
it had been almost 24-hour news. But recently, they were back to music almost all of the
time, even more than before Valentine’s Day.

Gary took his insulin and pills and played FreeCell on his computer until he got sleepy.
Tomorrow was another day and who knew what it would bring?

04Mar05…

How about his family? They pulled in around 10am, Damon leading in his stolen Hum-
mer and Derek, Mary and the kids following in their stolen Hummer. What a bunch of
car thieves he’d raised. As much as he loved Damon, and of that there could be no
doubt, Gary had a sweet spot in his heart for Derek. It was probably because Derek was
his own individual and unlike either Gary or his first wife. Anyway, after a brief family re-
union, Gary led Derek, Mary, Elizabeth and Joshua over to Dave’s house.

“Dave gave me the key to his house for you to use,” Gary explained. “He was taking his
ex and 2 daughters out of California and didn’t know when, or if, he’d be back. There
should be everything you need, except food. Dave said to tell you to keep it clean.”

“I hope he made it Dad,” Derek said, “We would have never made it without the ruse.”

“Are they going to come looking for you?” Gary asked.

“I hope not,” Derek said, “But we will need to dispose of that Hummer and trailer be-
cause that will be a dead giveaway.”

“We’ll get Damon to do something with them Derek,” Gary said. “Come over to our
house for meals today and we’ll transfer some food over here this afternoon.”

“Ok, but we need to get some rest, how about we see you for supper?” Derek suggest-
ed.

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“Want anything special?” Gary asked, “Or will MRE’s do?”

The look he got for that one told a big story!

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 Preparations – Chapter 24 – Whodunit?

Gary had let Damon get some sleep, but he made him move to the guest room and told
him he was going to have to dispose of those Hummers and trailer tonight. Gary walked
down to Ron’s to confirm that the boys had made it back ok. Not surprisingly, Ron and
Clarence were in the observation room.

“Didn’t see any bullet holes,” Ron said, “So they must be ok. Where did you put them
up?”

“I figured you know that too, you old busybody,” Gary teased.

“Gary put them in Dave’s house across the street Ron,” Clarence announced.

Oops, wrong busybody.

“Damon is going to ditch the vehicles tonight and then I’ll get them to working on a
plan,” Gary remarked.

“How is the hole coming?” Clarence asked.

“Et tu Brute?” Gary said.

“Huh?” Clarence said.

“Shakespeare, Clarence, Gary’s showing off again,” Ron smirked. “How is the hole
coming?”

“Done. Stuff is in it and it’s buttoned up,” Gary answered.

“How big did you make it?” Ron asked.

“8’x8’x8’,” Gary replied.

“You’ll have to be careful that they don’t use ground penetrating radar to find the hole,”
Ron said.

“Jeez, is everybody fixated on ground penetrating radar?” Gary snapped.

“No, some of us are fixated on the brand of generators you and Ron bought,” Clarence
laughed.

“Only because you didn’t buy an Onan,” Gary said.

“Look, you guys remember me telling you know those Surefire suppressors we bought,
right?” Gary asked.

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“No, I don’t believe you ever mentioned it to me,” Ron said, winking at Clarence.

“Anyway, Surefire is located in Fountain Valley,” Gary said.

“Our Fountain Valley?” Ron asked.

“Yeah Ron, our Fountain Valley,” Gary agreed, “Anyway, I figured on getting the boys to
make a trip down there and look for both suppressors and some lights.”

“Don’t forget batteries, Gar-Bear, they’re hard to find,” Ron prompted.

“Yes Ronald, is this my plan or yours?” Gary smarted back.

“Sorry.”

“Anyway, once we have the suppressors and tactical lights and such, we can start to
acquire weapons with night vision scopes and take some of that night vision equipment
from the guard,” Gary explained. “When we have enough equipment for a small force
we can recruit more people and after that build up to 2 or 3 squads.”

“So you’re going to recruit deserters and the disenchanted?” Clarence asked.

“Exactly,” Gary said.

“Just make sure they don’t run in a ringer on you,” Ron warned.

“Good advice, thanks,” Gary said.

At supper everyone got caught up on the family news; the subject of what was going on
in the US was never brought up. After supper Gary and the boys moved to the office for
a smoke and some serious conversation. Gary had a million questions but decided not
to bring them up. He wanted to know what Derek knew that he didn’t and guessed that
would come up quickly, but it didn’t. First Derek wanted to know all about Damon’s trip
and he actually took notes and asked questions. Then Derek talked about all of the mo-
torcycles in Dave’s garage and storage shed; apparently Derek had been exploring. Af-
ter that the matter of Dave’s machine shop in his garage came up.

“Darn it, Derek,” Gary said out of frustration, “I need to know what’s going on in the
country that got you to bolt for California.”

“Simple Dad, there was coup in Washington,” Derek said. “The Colonel in charge of our
outfit got called to Mt. Weather and was basically given a choice, go along with them or
die. He wasn’t willing to go along, but figured discretion was the better part of valor and

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pretended to go along.”

“We figured that out from Bush’s speech,” Gary said, “But who did it?”

“A bunch of ultra-liberals,” Derek replied.

“You mean the Kennedy, Schumer, Clinton crowd?” Gary asked.

“No, those three got killed when the bomb went off,” Derek replied. “I’m not totally sure
who is in charge, but I have my suspicions. So, have you figured out what we’re going
to do and where we’re going to start?”

“Yeah, but Damon has to dump those vehicles tonight,” Gary said, “That’s the first order
of business.”

“Ron told me about an abandoned mineshaft out in the desert to the east,” Damon of-
fered, “He said it was big enough to park a Mack truck in. We’ll take Derek’s Hummer
and trailer out there and stuff the mine entrance full of tumbleweeds. In a pinch, we can
always go back and get it. I’m going to park the Hummer I borrowed in the garage of
one of those old abandoned houses down the street. We might need it again.”

“Sounds risky to me, but whatever you say,” Gary went along. “I have another project
for the two of you as soon as you can get on it.”

“Like I said, do you have a plan?” Derek repeated.

“Yeah, we’re going to build our own little team of strikers and just plain harass the
Guard and the like to the limit,” Gary answered without further explanation.

“Now, about Dave’s stuff, Derek,” Gary said. “Dave’s a machinist and over the last 17
years has been putting that shop together. He had big plans at one time about quitting
his job and starting a business, but it didn’t work out. As for the mountain bikes, last I
knew he had 31 or 32 of them and they all run.”

“Don’t forget my Harley in your shed,” Damon said.

“And Damon’s Harley in my shed. Anyway, I want the two of you to make a trip to Foun-
tain Valley tomorrow night,” Gary said. “Find Surefire and get all the 5.56 and 7.62 sup-
pressors and M16 and M1A adapters you can find. Also, pick up some of the LED lights
and plenty of batteries. After that, Damon and you can go out and pick up more military
hardware. He’ll explain how he’s been doing that.”

“Ok Dad,” Derek said.

“Oh, one other thing boys,” Gary said. “Ron bought all of his 5.56×45 ammo at Walmart
a mile down the road. Think you could get in there and empty out the ammo?”

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“We’ll do that tonight, if we have time,” Derek said. “I suppose we’d better get going.”

“Not yet, I have something for you Derek,” Gary said. Gary went to the cabinet where he
stored his guns and got the Super Match M1A and LBE.

“Try this on for size,” Gary said handing Derek the rifle.

“Jeez,” Derek said, “Where did you get this?”

“Ron gave the rifle to me and I put on a Surefire suppressor,” Gary explained. “That’s a
3rd gen Russian day/night scope. The instructions and other parts are in the utility
pouch.”

Gary could see that Derek was pleased with the rifle. Derek didn’t say anything, it
wasn’t his way, but he had a grin etched on his face. Gary hated to push them right into
the fray, so quickly, but there was a lot to do. The longer this thing went on, the harder,
he assumed, it was going to be to get things done. The boys, Mary and the kids left to
go to Derek’s new home and Gary took his meds and went to bed. He was exhausted.

05Mar05…

Gary was up early. He stumbled down to the kitchen for his first cup of coffee and Derek
was sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee.

“What’s up?” Gary asked while he got his coffee.

“Just wanted to fill you in,” Derek said. “We ditched the Hummer and trailer and stopped
by the Walmart. Damon pulled in bold as you please and told the two Guard types
watching the place that we were there to impound the military ammo. The Dorks bought
it and even helped him load the ammo into his Hummer and trailer. Anyway, we got
63,000 rounds of that CCI 5.56×45.”

“Where did you put it?” Gary asked.

“Downstairs,” Derek said.

“Huh, I didn’t hear a thing,” Gary said.

“We heard you,” Derek laughed. “You snore loud enough to wake the dead. “I’m going
to get some sleep and we’ll head for Fountain Valley after dark. Do you have a map or
something?”

“Got an old road atlas, Derek,” Gary said, “But Damon knows where Fountain Valley is,

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he made deliveries there when he was driving truck.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning,” Derek said, yawning.

Sixty-three cases of 5.56×45 ammo put them way ahead of the curve. Gary decided to
clean up and walk down to Ron’s and bring him up to speed.

“Morning partner,” Ron said, “What’s new?”

“They put the Hummer in the mine you told Damon about and cleaned out Walmart of
their 5.56×45 ammo,” Gary reported.

“Did Derek say anything more about what is going on in Washington?” Ron wanted to
know.

“Bad news Ron,” Gary smiled, “Your girlfriend is dead. Kennedy and Schumer, too.”

“So, who is behind this?” Ron asked.

“Derek didn’t say Ron,” Gary admitted. “He said he had his suspicions, but wouldn’t give
out a name.”

“Probably John Kerry,” Ron proposed.

“I don’t know, and would rather not speculate,” Gary said. “Anyway, they’re going to our
Fountain Valley tonight on a little scrounging expedition.”

“Tell them to be careful,” Ron said.

“Oh, I almost forgot,” Gary said, “They went by Walmart last night. Picked up 63 cases
of 5.56×45. Even got the guards to help them load it into the Humvee.”

“You just told me that. Did you decide what you were going to do with the Super
Match?’ Ron asked.

“Gave it to Derek partner,” Gary smiled, “That boy can really shoot.”

“Nice to know you found it a good home,” Ron nodded.

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 Preparations – Chapter 25 – Communications

Just about then, Clarence joined them.

“Found what a good home?” he asked.

“Oh, Gary gave the Super Match to Derek,” Ron explained.

“I’ve been thinking guys,” Clarence said, “It sure is funny how fast they got the utilities
back up and running. Kinda makes you think that they weren’t as damaged as we were
led to believe. And, another thing, I’ve been watching and listening to Presidential
speeches for years. Never saw or heard one where the media didn’t go into a feeding
frenzy picking apart the speech word by word. Last night after Bush gave his speech,
they started playing a Willie Nelson tune. Didn’t have one word to say about the
speech.”

“For all we know Clarence, that speech might have been taped,” Gary said. But, it had
to have been at least 8 or 9 days after Valentine’s Day or Bush would have never gotten
away with that 6th and 8th day bit.”

“I sure wish we knew who was behind this,” Clarence said. “Any ideas?”

“Liberals,” Ron announced, “And it wasn’t Kennedy, Schumer or Clinton from what
Derek told Gary. My money is on Kerry.”

“Hell Ron,” Clarence said, “This was way beyond anything Kerry was capable of, it
couldn’t have been him.”

They took a few minutes and filled Clarence in on all that Gary and Ron knew and sus-
pected. By the time they had finished the conversation, they had a list of a half dozen
names of who might be behind the current situation. Gary had one name in particular
that he was going to run by Derek the next morning and see how Derek reacted. Clar-
ence wanted to know more about what Gary had in mind for a long-term plan.

“Clarence, I figure that some of those National Guard boys won’t take too kindly to that
speech,” Gary explained. “Now, if we can get say 3 dozen or so of them on our side, we
might be able to get them to help us out. Those that want to just get out can join up with
Damon and Derek. That trailer park next door, Grecian Isles, looks pretty empty. And,
there’s that bunch down at Palmdale High School. Remember that they were segregat-
ing the prepared folks from the unprepared folks and putting the prepared ones in that
stadium? I bet we can find a bunch of like-minded people there.”

They visited a while longer and then Gary left. He had something he wanted to do in the
worst way. He got David to bring him 3 cases of the Walmart 5.56×45 ammo from the
‘basement’ and put them on his beat up 2-wheeler and headed for Chris and Patti’s.
Chris came to the door.

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“Brought you something cheapskate,” Gary smiled.

“Gee, tanks (not thanks, tanks),” Chris said.

“I need one of the car radios, a charger and a scanner,” Gary said.

“Gee, I don’t know,” Chris said.

“Look cheapskate,” Gary reminded Chris, “I only loaned you those radios back in ‘96, I
didn’t give them to you. I need one for our OP. Ron can’t get around much and he is sit-
ting there in front of his window 24/7 keeping an eye on things.”

“Seeing you put it that way,” Chris said, “Ok.”

Gary pushed the 2-wheeler back home and got several packages of AA cells for the
scanner. He took everything to Ron’s.

“Here’s a business frequency handheld and a scanner partner,” he told Ron, “Now you
can communicate with everyone.”

“I don’t have one of those GMRS/FRS radios,” Ron observed, “Do you suppose Dick
could spare one?”

“I’ll ask him Ron,” Gary said. “I’d also like to come up with some Ham equipment. We
could make this room into a regular command center. It has a great view and should be
ideal. Guess I’ll have to send the boys down to the Valley.”

Dick was more than happy to loan Gary a GMRS/FRS radio. He appreciated having
Ron up in that room basically 24/7 keeping an eye on things. Dick had an old pair of
German binoculars that his dad had brought back from Europe in 1945. He gave them
to Gary for Ron to use. With his position and a good pair of binoculars, Ron could keep
an eye on the traffic up on Palmdale Boulevard to the north. Gary went back to Ron’s
and gave him the radio and the binoculars. Ron had gotten John to help and had moved
a folding table to the room.

He had also dug out a map of Palmdale and pinned it on the wall. He seemed to really
be getting into the spirit of things and although he still had the left arm in a sling be-
cause of the pacemaker, was getting around pretty good for an ugly old fart. That was
the downside to the pacemaker surgery. In order to insure that the leads to his heart
didn’t move, Ron had to keep his left arm in a sling for 2 weeks. John had pitched in and
was helping Ron run the little OP and command center. Things were definitely looking
good in this department.

Gary had a bowl of soup and sat down in his recliner. The next thing he knew, Sharon
was calling him for supper. He was still ½ full from the soup and only ate a little, more

126
out of politeness than hunger. His head didn’t hurt anymore, but he seemed to need
more sleep. Maybe it was the lingering effects from the blow to his head or maybe he
was just getting old. The boys were getting ready to leave and he told them to be care-
ful. And, since it came to mind, he suggested that if they had time, they should stop by
the HRO in Anaheim and see what they could get in the way of Ham radios, antennas
and cable. Damon said that Fountain Valley and Anaheim weren’t that far apart, so they
would see what they could do; he didn’t want to be that far from home a lot. Gary about
½ had a headache so he took his meds early and turned in.

06Mar05…

Because he’d gone to bed so early, Gary was already up when Damon and Derek came
in just after dawn. And, he had a terrible headache. They had very good luck in Foun-
tain Valley. They carried in several armloads of the suppressors, adapters, the LED
lights and batteries. All of that material went straight to the hole. Damon had 2 Yaesu
HF rigs, an ICOM receiver, a Yaesu receiver, several antennas, an assortment of RG-
213U cables, the list went on and on and the pile grew higher and higher as they hauled
all of the equipment into the living room and piled it up. It looked like the boys hadn’t
known what to get and had just cleaned out the store, or a good portion of it. Consider-
ing how poor HRO’s inventory usually was, probably the entire store. The boys took a
minute to fill him in and headed for the sack.

Gary hoped Ron was awake. It was awfully early, but when he looked up at Ron’s win-
dow, Ron waved to him.

“Shhh, everyone’s still sleeping,” Ron whispered. They went up to the OP and Ron
closed the door so they could talk. “How did they do?” Ron asked.

“Hell Ron, those boys of mine must be natural born thieves,” Gary laughed. “Half my liv-
ing room is stacked with Ham equipment and we have LED lights, batteries and sup-
pressors running out our ears. Do you have another folding table, or should I bring one
down?”

“Better bring one Gar-Bear, this is the only one I have,” Ron replied.

“Ok I’ll have David bring down the 8’ table and a couple of folding chairs partner,” Gary
acknowledged. “This is coming together better than I thought. If I can get Dick to put up
the antennas, we should have a radio shack set up for you before the end of the day.
Which reminds me, I noticed some GMRS/FRS radios in that pile of equipment they
brought back, so we can return Dick’s radio to him.”

“What’s it like out there?” Ron asked, “Did they fill you in?”

“Man, they were tired, so I didn’t ask,” Gary said. “They can take the night off tonight

127
and we’ll get together and talk it over. I thought that they’d have to go out tonight for the
Ham equipment anyway, so I guess we’re a day ahead of schedule.”

“Did you get any receivers?” Ron asked.

“Two, a Yaesu and an ICOM,” Gary said, “And some base station scanners.”

“It might be nice to put that table right here in front of the window,” Ron said. “We could
put the radios on each side and I could watch and listen at the same time.”

“I guess I’d better bring you a plastic floor mat and one of my swivel office chairs,” Gary
said, “You are going to be busier than a one-armed paper hanger.”

“You have the one-armed part right Gar-Bear,” Ron laughed, “I’ll sure be glad when I
can dump this sling. You look a little off today, are you feeling ok?”

“No, I’m not partner,” Gary said, “It’s the headache; I got it back today. I’m going back
home and lay down for a while. Give me Dick’s radio and I’ll give it back to him.”

Walking out Ron’s front door, Gary spied Dick tinkering with his pickup. He walked over
to return the radio.

“Morning Gary,” Dick said.

“Morning Dick. I have your radio,” Gary said.

“I was in no rush to get it back,” Dick observed.

“We picked up some more last night. Say, are you free today?” Gary asked.

“Unfortunately yes, what do you need?” Dick inquired.

“I need you to mount 3 antennas on Ron’s house and 3 on my house, Dick,” Gary ex-
plained.

“What kind of antennas?” Dick asked.

“A Diamond D-130-J, a Comet tri-bander and a Gap Titan DX for each house,” Gary
said. “I’ve never heard of the Gap, but it covers 10 meters to 80 meters, so I guess it will
be ok.”

“Did you get some radios, too?” Dick asked.

“You need something?” Gary asked.

“A scanner,” Dick said.

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“You’re in luck, they brought back several,” Gary said.

“How many D-130-J’s did they get?” Dick asked.

“4 or 5,” Gary said.

“Well, if you could part with a scanner and a D-130-J,” Dick said, “I’d put in all the stuff
for free.”

“Come on down and look through the pile, partner,” Gary said, “There’s more equipment
than you will ever want.”

Dick followed Gary back to the house. He took a D-130-J, a Bearcat scanner and a
length of pre-wired RG-8 cable. Gary told him to come and go as he pleased and to use
the RG-213U cable on Ron’s and his installations. Gary picked out a Yaesu VR-5000
scanning receiver, a Yaesu FT-1000D transceiver, an ICOM IC-910H with the 1200Mhz
option, a Cobra 148NW ST and 2 digital 24-hour clocks. He cleared off the desk and set
up the equipment. He set one clock to local time and the other to GMT (Zulu). He
plugged everything into a spare surge protector and plugged in the surge protector. He
went back to the living room, found mikes for the radios and hooked those up.

Next, Gary selected an ICOM IC-R8500 receiver, a Yaesu FT-1000D transceiver, an

ICOM IC-910H (with the option), and two digital clocks for Ron. David and the boys car-
ried the table, radios and clocks to Ron’s and Gary brought the microphones and
pushed the chair.

It didn’t take long to set up the table and install the radio equipment just like Ron wanted
it. Ron was going to have to do a lot of reading to get competent with the radio equip-
ment, but then, Ron had a lot of ‘free’ time. Gary still wanted a StarDuster Base Anten-
na for his CB radio, but didn’t know where to find one. He also wanted 1000-watt linear
amplifiers for the CB’s but again, didn’t know where to find them. This was obviously a
job for #1 son (Damon). They had drug back a pile of the tripods and 10’x1¼” mast sec-
tions. Dick was on the roof of Ron’s house and Gary walked down and hollered up to
him.

“Dick, please put in 4 tripods, not 3, we’re going to mount some CB Base antennas.”

Dick waived and continued to install the tripods. It looked like he’d have Ron’s house
done today and could start on Gary’s tomorrow. Gary walked back home, dug out an-
other of the Cobra radios and a power supply and hauled them down to Ron’s. Man,
they had gone from famine to feast in the communications department and they were
going to have a primary and backup communications shack. The only problem Gary
could see was that he needed a computer for his ‘communications shack’.

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 Preparations – Chapter 26 – The Valley

Gary still hadn’t taken a nap and his headache was getting worse. He popped a couple
Vicodin and sat down in his recliner to let them kick in. The next thing he knew, Derek
was shaking him and it was dark outside.

“What do you want us to do tonight Dad?” Derek asked.

“Uh, crap, uh, could you get me a cup of coffee and 2 Vicodin?” Gary asked.

“Don’t feel well?” Derek asked.

“Headache,” Gary answered.

Gary washed the two pills down with the lukewarm coffee. He noticed that Sharon was
making a new pot. He sat for a moment to let his head clear and then told Derek what
he needed.

“Ok, I need you and Damon to go to the Valley tonight, Derek. There is an HRO store
on Victory in Burbank. Clean it out,” Gary said. “And, get your hands on some yellow
pages and find us some StarDuster Base Antennas for our CB radios. While you’re at it,
look for some 1,000-watt linear amps for our CB’s.”

“Those are illegal aren’t they?” Derek asked.

“I think so. In fact, I hope so,” Gary tried to laugh. “Frankly, I don’t care. Get as many as
you can find except don’t go over 1,000 watts, that’s the power limit on the StarDuster
antennas. While you boys are out, it wouldn’t bother me a bit if you picked up some
more military hardware. By the way, get a couple of those suppressors and mount them
on your M16’s before you go.”

“Won’t that be a little obvious?” Derek asked.

“No, the FA means Fast Attach. You replace the regular flashhider with Surefire’s flash-
hider/mount.” Gary replied.

“My M16 has a fixed flashhider Dad,” Derek said.

“That’s ok Derek, there’s a bunch of GI issue M16A2’s in the basement,” Gary said,
“Convert two of those. Another thing for your shopping list is night vision equipment. Try
to take out people that have night vision equipment, ok?”

“Do you want the AN/PVS-14 Monocular Night Vision Device?” Derek asked.

“I don’t know military numbers, what the hell is that?” Gary asked, none too politely.

130
“The AN/PVS-14 MNVD will provide leaders of combat infantry units with a lightweight
night vision device. The MNVD is used in observation and command and control mis-
sions. It may be used by the soldier in several modes: hand held, head mounted, helmet
mounted or affixed and boresighted to a rifle with aiming light. For longer range obser-
vation missions, a 3x magnifier is provided. The MNVD uses 3d Gen I2 technology and
is capable down to overcast/starlight,” Derek said.

“You sound like a drill instructor, kid,” Gary laughed, “I just want the helmet mounted
stuff, ok?”

“Ok Dad, sorry,” Derek laughed. “That’s the 14.”

“From now on, how about I tell you in English and you just translate that to military and
take care of it?” Gary suggested.

“10-4,” Derek winked. “Why do you want so much comm. gear?”

“We’re starting out local, going intrastate and then interstate, ok?” Gary snapped.

“Jeez, I just asked,” Derek said.

“Sorry, kid, I’ve got a killer of a headache,” Gary explained.

That night, the boys cleaned out the HRO in Burbank, found the StarDuster antennas
and the linear amps and managed to come back with an assortment of military gear.
The troops that they had run into had been pushing around some civilians that had
sneaked out of the AV and had returned to the Valley. Derek had taken the M-4FA out
of his pack, attached it and had demonstrated just how quiet the unit was for the benefit
(?) of the troops.

The only problem was that the troops were unable to report the news to anyone; they
were very, very dead. Anyway, this gave the boys a second Hummer to drive and hide;
something that would prove to be of great use soon. Damon and Derek unloaded their
haul from the evening, putting the M16A2’s they’d acquired, the 40mm grenades and
hand grenades, etc. in the basement. The living room was beginning to fill with radio
equipment, too. They just brought the Kevlar helmets, rather than removing the
AN/PVS-14 equipment. They were also careful not to wake Gary.

07Mar05…

Gary slept until almost 10am and his headache wasn’t quite as bad. It was still worth 2
Vicodin, but he planned to make them last for 8 hours. By the time he’d drunk some cof-
fee, had his nicotine fix and eaten a couple of pancakes, he felt almost human. A hot
shower did wonders to clear his head and after he dressed, he went to check on the

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new radio equipment. The amplifiers were XForce 40012 CB Radio Amplifiers, with var-
iable preamp. They were for SSB and were rated at 450W dead key 1400W PEP. Gary
guessed they were all the boys could find. He took an amplifier and antenna down to
Ron’s. Dick was up on the roof, just finishing up.

“Dick, I have the other antenna,” Gary yelled to him.

“Ok, I’ll come down and get it and install it,” Dick called back. “Then I’ll be down to work
on your house.”

Gary rang the bell and Linda let him in. He didn’t really even have to ask anymore, he
just climbed the stairs to the OP.

“What do you have there, Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“A linear amplifier for your CB radio partner,” Gary said, “It should boost your signals
some.”

“Oh, oh,” Ron said, “Trouble.”

Gary looked out the window. A Humvee was pulled up at the entrance and from the look
of the waiving arms and pointed fingers, they seemed to be interested in this house.
Gary set the linear amplifier in the closet and he and Ron slowly walked to the entrance
of the tract.

“Is there a problem guys?” Gary asked.

“These soldiers seem to be concerned about those antennas,” Matt explained.

“What’s the problem with the antennas?” Gary asked the nearest soldier.

“Why do you need so many antennas?” the soldier asked.

“Well, not that it’s any of your business, the one on the far left is a CB antenna, the one
next to it is a scanner antenna, the next one is a tri-bander VHF/UHF antenna and the
one on the far right is a high frequency antenna,” Gary said. “What’s the problem?”

“You have licenses for those antennas?” the soldier asked.

“Well, unless they changed the law in the last 5 seconds, we don’t need a license for the
antennas,” Gary said, “We only need licenses to operate the radios and yes, we have
amateur technician’s licenses.”

It had taken several passes of his scanner for Gary to come up with what amounted to a
blank license. He had one and his call sign was KD6GDQ. Ronald didn’t and Gary had
made one for him using the call sign W0EYO, an unused call sign. Gary had cut out

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their station licenses, framed them and posted them next to the radios the day before.
He had given Ron the fake wallet sized license. Ron and he pulled out their licenses to
show the soldier. The soldier didn’t seem to be particularly satisfied, but it was a federal
license and his instructions didn’t cover the situation he now found himself in.

“Well, all right, for now,” the soldier said. “But I’m going to check on this with my ser-
geant and if you’re pulling a fast one, I’ll be back.”

“Would you like to inspect our radio equipment?” Gary asked, “It’s all perfectly legal and
we have nothing to hide.”

“Nah, but like I said, I’m going to check,” the soldier snorted.

Gary and Ron began to walk back to Ron’s house.

“I thought we were goners,” Ron said.

“Crap, that dork wouldn’t know the difference between a HF, VHF or UHF radio if his life
depended on it,” Gary laughed. “Besides, wasn’t it you who told me that the best de-
fense was a good offense?”

“I can’t remember,” Ron said.

“Look, Dick is done with your house and working on mine,” Gary said, “Let’s get your
linear hooked up and you’ll be ready to go.”

Gary couldn’t remember mentioning to Derek that he needed a computer for his comm.
shack but there set a new computer, still in its box. It had a 19” LCD display, too. Gary
hooked up the keyboard and mouse, connected the computer to his switch and plugged
it into the surge protector. He went back to the living room and scrounged around in the
pile until he found the speakers and took them to his desk and hooked them up. It
looked ready to go, so he turned it on to see what he had. Windows XP. He entered a
password at the prompt and the computer began to install all of the software on the
HDD. It seemed to take forever, but finally the computer was ready to use. Gary clicked
on the My Computer line in the start menu to see what he had. “Nice,” he thought, “A
3.6 GHz Pentium 4 with 1 Gig of ram. He installed the software for his router/DSL setup
and then clicked on Windows Update. He wondered if Microsoft were still online. Yep,
they sure were and the computer needed a whole bunch of updates. He went through
the process, adding first the Critical updates and Service Packs, and then the Windows
XP updates and finally the driver updates. The Norton Antivirus seemed to take care of
itself and was waiting for him to click next. When he was done, he played a game of
FreeCell, just to initiate the computer.

Gary fiddled around until he got the computer to ‘talk’ to his older computer with the Win

133
2k on it and copied the files containing the Windows XP drivers for his three printers. By
the time he had finished with all of the things he had to do, an RG-213U cable was com-
ing down from the pipe in his ceiling. He hollered at Dick and Dick said it was the CB
antenna, so he connected the antenna lead to the linear amp and had his CB ready to
go. Just to be sure, he walked outside and asked Dick if the lead was connected to the
antenna; he didn’t want to blow the amp. Dick nodded his head yes. Gary noticed that
Dick was putting his tripods in a lot faster than Ron’s had gone in.

“How long do you think this will take, Dick?” he shouted.

“I’ll be all done by dark,” Dick shouted back.

One by one the cables came through the pipe and Gary connected them to the radios
as Dick told him what the antennas were for. Dick was just about right on the money;
the sun was just setting when he rang the doorbell.

“You wouldn’t happen to have another one of those CB antennas would you?” Dick
asked.

“Sure, do you need a radio too?” Gary asked.

“Dick smiled, “If you have one, yes.”

Gary got Dick his old SSB CB radio, a linear, and a tripod, mast and cable, it was the
least he could do. Well, they had communications, and from the look of it, enough
equipment for several locations. Gary asked David if they could put the extra equipment
in the garage and free up the living room floor. Gary hoped he wouldn’t have to send the
boys down to the Valley anymore, it didn’t sound to him like things were very good in
the Valley. And, what was this BS about the troops hassling those folks? Maybe Derek
would explain when he woke up.

The United States of America was becoming a very bad place to live. The coup leaders
were liberals, but they had a twisted way of thinking, obviously. They were, by God, go-
ing to save the people from themselves, even if they had to kill a few. They planted
American made suitcase nukes in the six cities where they were least likely to do dam-
age. The bombs planted on the pipelines and substations had only ever been intended
to do superficial damage and that accounted for the utilities being restored so quickly.
Unfortunately, they hadn’t planned well, and the equipment they needed to rescue the
people from the cities had gone up in smoke. That part of Bush’s speech had been true.
Bush was safely tucked away at Mt. Weather, albeit without any freedom whatsoever.
They had him locked away for future use. They had killed everyone on the SS detail
who wasn’t a part of the plot, which was most of them. Now, they were relocating peo-
ple and after a little indoctrination intended to free them.

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 Preparations – Chapter 27 – Blackout

What is it with tyrants? Obviously, they have their own agenda, but are they all crazy?
The very idea that they could indoctrinate the American people into a new attitude was
insane. Maybe the sheeple would go for it, but a lot of them died in those 6 cities. And,
those that remained had been mugged by the inept running of the relocation camps.
The coup was doomed to failure, but the plotters had no idea how badly they’d screwed
the pooch. Gary, Ron and Clarence weren’t the only people who read the Bible or fig-
ured out what Bush was getting at in his speech. Bush didn’t even have the three men
in mind; his message was aimed directly at the Moral Majority. They weren’t called that
anymore, but you know whom I mean.

As a matter of fact, none of the three men were big on church going. Getting dressed up
each Sunday and sitting in a pew for an hour or so didn’t make you a good Christian.
Being a Christian was more about how you lived your life. It was about taking the
$25,000 the bank sent you to bail you out and using it to help other people as well as
yourself. Of the three, Gar-Bear was the poorest at attending church. It just seemed to
him that he ran into more hypocrites at church than anywhere else. He was probably
making a blanket assumption that didn’t apply to everyone in the church, but if the shoe
fits, wear it. Besides, the church was the people, not the building.

Gary had managed to get through the day without taking more Vicodin. When his head-
ache began to creep back, he popped a couple of Tylenol extra strength and gritted his
teeth. Probably most people who had experienced a head injury would have been con-
cerned when they kept getting headaches, but Gary just attributed it to the stress of the
situation. He’d checked his blood sugar and it was within the ‘normal’ range, so it wasn’t
anything to do with his diabetes. It was probably, he told himself, just the lingering ef-
fects of the blow to his head and it would pass soon. His vision was a little blurry, but
what should a nearly 62 year-old diabetic expect?

Gary had a bleeder. It was a tiny vessel in his brain that had been made even smaller
by the diabetic neuropathy. The fact that the vessel was severely constricted accounted,
in part, for his faulty short-term memory. It had also saved his life up to this point. The
boys were taking the night off and Gary ate a light dinner, took 2 Vicodin and went to
bed early.

07Mar05…

Gary woke up with a splitting headache. He was really disorganized and didn’t recog-
nize his surroundings. He tried to sit up but nothing seemed to work. He looked around
and it finally dawned on his muddled brain that he wasn’t at home in his bed. It looked
like a hospital, but he hadn’t gone to the hospital so what the hell was he doing in one?

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Sharon hadn’t been able to awaken Gary. She became concerned and they called the
Paramedics. They couldn’t bring Gary around and transported him to Lancaster to the
hospital.

An MRI revealed the bleeder and Gary had gone under the knife. Three hours later, he
was in the recovery room but didn’t wake up for another two. And, when he did wake
up, he was a pretty confused tired old man. The doctor came by and explained what
had happened. Gary was only hearing about every third word and they weren’t register-
ing. The next thing he remembered was waking up a second time in a bed in a private
room.

Man was he thirsty. His mouth was so dry that he could hardly talk. He croaked out “wa-
ter” and the nurse pressed a wet washcloth to his lips. Once he got his voice, he asked
what had happened. The nurse said something about a microscopic aneurysm and how
lucky he had been. The doctor had explained it all to him, didn’t he remember? What
doctor? Oh, that guy when he woke up the first time that was from India or somewhere
who spoke perfect Indian English. He talked and Gary had listened, anyway. It was an-
ybody’s guess what the guy had been trying to say, but it must have been important or
the guy wouldn’t have said it, right?

Gary looked around and decided that this was Lancaster Community hospital, not AV
Hospital. That was good; AV had a bad reputation, even though it was the AV’s trauma
center. “Oh, oh he comes Doctor Mumbles,” Gary thought.

“Mr. Olsen, how are we feeling tonight?” Mumbles asked.

“I don’t know how you feel Doc, but I feel like crap,” Gary said.

“I’ll increase your medication,” Mumbles said.

“What happened?” Gary asked.

“Were you recently injured?” Mumbles asked, “Perhaps a blow to the head?”

“Yeah, but it didn’t hurt anything vital,” Gary tried to joke.

“What happened?” Mumbles asked.

“We were in a firefight and a bullet hit a rock and I got beaned by the rock,” Gary ex-
plained.

“And the headaches?” Mumbles asked.

“Came and went, until recently,” Gary said.

“We repaired a broken blood vessel in your head,” Mumbles explained. “If you weren’t a

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diabetic with neuropathy, you’d be dead.”

“Some people have all the luck,” Gary said. “When can I go home?”

“Normally, we’d keep you for several days, perhaps a week,” Mumbles said, “But, due to
the present crisis, we’re sending you home tomorrow. You will need to get plenty of bed
rest.”

(Yeah, right!) “Ok Doc, I’ll see to it, what is your name, by the way?” Gary asked.

“I’m Doctor Singh,” Mumbles said.

“Thanks for fixing me up Doc,” Gary said, “How about that pain pill?”

“The nurse will be in a moment Mr. Olsen and we’ll dispense some Vicodin for you to
take home,” Dr. Singh said.

“What a revolting development this was,” to quote Reilly (if you understand that, you’re
old).

08Mar05…

Gary woke up to see Clarence and Sharon standing by his bed. He suddenly realized
that he didn’t have any drawers on either. What was the deal with hospitals, they always
took your drawers when you went into surgery, but never seem to give them back. May-
be they had an outlet store for used drawers, do you suppose? Anyway Sharon had
been through this before and, bless her heart was holding a pair of clean drawers for
Gary.

He took them and Sharon pulled the curtain shut so he could feel a little more ‘comfort-
able’. Then, she handed him his pants. Buttheads would probably charge him for break-
fast and it was only, he looked, 6:30am? Darn, he was a sick man, what was this crap
about throwing him out at 6:30am? Sorry Gary, new Medicare rules, as soon as the
bleeding stopped, you were well enough to go home.

Clarence took one arm and Sharon the other and walked him to the car. Where was the
wheelchair they insisted you ride even though you could walk? Oh, he couldn’t walk
worth a crap, so that probably meant he didn’t get a wheelchair. They helped him into
the front seat and woke him when they got to Moon Shadows.

“Thanks partner,” Gary told Clarence.

“You go to bed, Gary,” Clarence said, “We’ve got it covered.”

“Got what covered?” Gary asked.

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“Go to bed Gary, you’re a sick man,” Clarence said.

“Not according to old Doc Mumbles,” Gary said, “Hey did they give you any Vicodin?”

“Yes dear,” Sharon said, “A whole 12 tablets of 500-mg Vicodin.”

“That’s great,” Gary said, “But what do I do for medicine this afternoon?”

It didn’t matter; Gary went to sleep and didn’t wake up until after dark. His head didn’t
hurt nearly as badly either. He got out of bed and went to the bathroom. Then, he put on
his jeans and shirt and sandals and got his cane. Ron was sick and he had to go check
on him. Apparently no one heard the garage door open and Gary made it to Ron’s with-
out being discovered. He rang the bell and Linda looked at him like he was crazy.

“What are you doing out of bed?” she asked.

“I came to check on Ronald,” Gary said.

“Ron’s fine, you should go home and get back in bed,” Linda said.

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Gary mumbled and started up the stairs. “Funny,” he thought,
“I didn’t remember there being this many steps.”

Gary finally made it to the top of the stairs and walked (stumbled) into the OP.

“How are you doing Ronald?” Gary asked.

“Aw crap,” Ron said. “Take this chair before you fall on your butt, I can’t pick you up with
only one arm.”

Gary sat down in the chair (collapsed). “So tell me, what’s the other guy look like?” Gary
said.

“What other guy?” Ron asked.

“The one that kicked my butt,” Gary said.

“You’re a sick man Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “You darn near died.”

“Well I didn’t die and I’m actually feeling a little better tonight, Ron,” Gary said, “So bring
me up to speed and I’ll go home and go back to bed.”

“The feds found that Hummer that Damon had hidden in the garage down the street,”
Ron explained. “They came over here asking what we knew about it and Dick told them
some guy in a uniform dumped it and headed down Avenue R to the east.”

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“They buy that?” Gary asked.

“I guess,” Ron said, “We never heard any more about it.”

“Where did Damon stash the other Hummer?” Gary asked.

“He didn’t say and I didn’t ask,” Ron replied.

“I guess you and I have about the same kind of luck, Ron,” Gary said, “You got cancer
and it saved your life and I got diabetes and it saved my life. I’m going home now, but I’ll
be back in the morning.”

“Thanks for the warning,” Ron smiled.

Gary had only given the boys one night off, so he wondered if they had been out ‘buy-
ing’ military equipment or had gotten foolish and taken the night off just because he’d
gotten a little sick. He barely cleared Ron’s door before one was at each elbow trying to
help him get back home.

“Thanks guys,” he said, “But I got here under my own steam and I have enough left to
get home. Did you go out last night or sit around and mope?”

“Actually, we found where the Guard was keeping their supplies, Dad,” Derek said, “We
made out like bandits.”

“I don’t suppose you’ve managed to recruit anyone yet have you?” Gary asked.

“Yes and no,” Derek said, “Last night while we were checking out the Armory over on
30th Street, we overheard a couple of locals talking about what a bunch of BS this
whole thing is, but we didn’t try to approach them. We’re going to check them out a little
first.”

“Good, Ron told me to be careful we didn’t get duped into taking in a plant,” Gary said.

“What did you get last night?” Gary asked.

“Claymores, 40mm grenades, magazines and some AN/PVS-14 equipment,” Damon

answered.

“Good. Try and come up with some of those Interceptor vests, would you?” Gary sug-
gested, “I don’t like you two yard birds running around without any protection.”

“I used your radio to talk to some friends back in Iowa yesterday,” Derek said. “I was
right about who is behind all of this.”

Gary leaned over and whispered a name into Derek’s ear.

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“How did you know?” Derek asked.

“I didn’t, but he seemed like the most obvious one to be able to pull it off,” Gary said.
“It’s a pretty sad day when someone like that would sponsor a coup against the gov-
ernment. You realize that this will just make it all that much harder to get control of the
country back don’t you?”

“I don’t know about that Dad.” Derek said, “All he is going to succeed in doing is making
a whole lot of people mad.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 28 – Recruits

The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of
his country; but he that stands it NOW deserves the love and thanks of man and wom-
an. - Thomas Paine

Damon and Derek were not of that ilk. Derek was a year-around soldier and he was
very angry. The idea that a man of that stature would attempt to do what was now being
done chilled him to the core. For all that was said about America, the good and the bad,
when the people were pushed far enough, they would rise to the occasion. That was
true in the past and it was true now. America had gotten soft from too many years of
good living. Then decay had set in and people like the late Senator Kennedy and the
like set about destroying the country from within.

There wasn’t any free lunch, anymore, and hadn’t been for a long time. But, if one were
to believe the liberals, some of us had to buy the rest the free lunch. When it had started
was debatable, but where it started was a fact known by most Americans, right here in
good old California. Or, did they know that? They did if they watched some of the edu-
cational channels like Discovery and the History Channel.

Damon wasn’t really certain what there was about the situation that po’d him. Maybe it
was the fact that this temporary government thought they had the right to tell people
what to think. That was why Damon hadn’t done very well in the Navy; they had told him
what to think and he couldn’t deal with that. It had nothing to do with whether or not he
was patriotic; it was just some sort of rebellion within him against authority figures. It
had taken his Dad a long time to figure that one out because his Dad had his own inter-
nal struggle with authority figures and sometimes, people couldn’t see the forest for the
trees.

There were going back tonight to see if the same 2 men were pulling guard duty at the
Armory. If they were and if they still sounded disgruntled (as opposed to gruntled) they
might just approach the men and engage them in a little conversation. Normally, they
would have preferred family men, but this fight could turn deadly very quickly and Derek
and he agreed to only recruit single men. And, nothing against the fairer sex, but they
were going to pass on the ladies for this group. There wasn’t any doubt about their abili-
ties, far from it, but Mary had suggested that they form a separate group with the ladies
that wanted in and the ladies would do their own thing. Somehow, Damon had the idea
that the people they were up against would be better off getting hit by the men than that
group of women Mary was forming. Maybe he was thinking about the Indians and the
things that those women had done to captives a hundred or more years before.

They left around 10 pm and made their way to the armory. It was a 2-mile walk, but they
made good time. The same two men were sitting there and Derek heard one of them
say: “I’ve had enough of this BS, I’m out of here.”

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His companion said, “Me too, it just isn’t right what they are telling us to do. Those peo-
ple did nothing to deserve our attention. Let alone get arrested.”

“Where do you two think you’re going?” Derek suddenly said, walking up to the men.

“Screw you Sarge, I ain’t putting up with this crap anymore,” the first man said.

The second main started to raise his M16, he was clearly ready to fight.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Damon called from the shadows. Damon walked out,
his M16 still on his shoulder, but that nasty little shotgun was pointed right at the second
man’s gut.

“So you boys have had enough, huh?” Derek challenged. “Are you just going to run and
hide or, are you intending to do something about it?”

The first soldier looked at Derek for a moment. “I don’t know you, who the hell are you
and what do you mean by ‘do something about it’?”

“It’s simple,” Derek said, “Are you a real soldier sworn to protect and defend the Consti-
tution or are you a sunshine patriot? No, you don’t know me, but if you really want to do
something to turn this country around and restore freedom, you’ll come with us.”

“And if we don’t want to come with you?” the second soldier asked.

“Well, we’ve revealed ourselves to you,” Damon said, “So, you could turn us in if you got
in a tough spot. We’re not going to risk that, guy.”

“How do I know you aren’t part of this whole conspiracy and are just trying to trick us?”
the first soldier ask.

“You don’t, do you?” Derek said, “On the other hand, what do you have to lose? If we’re
the bad guys, you’re dead. If we’re the good guys and you say no, you’re dead. Roll
those dice.”

“What do you think Jim?” the first soldier asked the second.

“Roy, if I’m going to die, it will be fighting, not because I chickened out,” Jim said.

“Are you both single?” Derek asked.

“What business is that of yours?” Roy asked.

“We don’t want any married men,” Derek explained. “The authorities could get to their
families and really put us in a bind.”

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“I’m divorced,” Roy said, “And Jim’s never been married.”

“What about the ex-wife?” Derek asked.

“What about her?” Roy asked, “The broad ran off with my best friend and got herself
killed in LA.”

“How’s about you two help us with some supplies, if you’re in?” Derek said.

“You asking or telling?” Jim challenged.

“Asking,” Derek replied, “You’re in if you want in, otherwise…”

“There’s a deuce and a half parked out back,” Roy said, “If one of you boys wants to get
it, I’ll help; I’m in.”

“I’m in too, if the offer is still open,” Jim added.

“Well Jim, my name is Derek and we’d be glad to have you and Roy,” Derek extended
his hand, “The guy with the shotgun is my older brother Damon.”

“Why doesn’t one of you go get that truck?” Damon suggested.

The Armory didn’t have that much in it. Some more night vision gear, magazines, 6 M-
16’s, none with M203’s, several cases of MRE’s, and a battalion sized first aid kit about
covered it. They loaded the meager pickings into the truck and headed to the place
they’d raided the night before. There was a hell of a lot more stuff there than in the Ar-
mory. They bluffed their way into additional claymores, 40mm grenades, and magazines
plus several of the Interceptor vests with level IV 10”x12”plates. It turned out to be a
pretty good night.

“We’re going to take you two to a place about 2 miles from where we’re staying,” Derek
said. “Do you know where Grecian Isles is?”

“Out a ways on Ave. R?” Jim asked.

“Yes. We’ll put you up there for tonight and leave you a case of the Meals Refused by
Ethiopians,” Derek commented.

“You really a Staff?” Roy asked.

“Yep. Iowa National Guard,” Derek answered.

“Iowa? What the hell are you doing in California?” Roy quizzed.

143
“Saving the country, what do you think?” Damon answered for Derek.

They took Roy and Jim to an empty trailer and got a case of MRE’s out of the truck.
Derek explained that he would ‘drive back’ the next day and would bring them some real
food. This was a 2-bedroom trailer and it had clean sheets, running water and every-
thing they needed, except food. They would cover the details more fully tomorrow. And
if anyone came around looking for them, those folks over in the Moon Shadows tract to
the east would maybe give them shelter; Derek wasn’t certain, he said, but he’d heard
good things about them.

Rather than risk exposing their ruse, Derek and Damon drove the 6-by down to Avenue
R-8, east to 47th street, north to Avenue R and approached Moon Shadows from the
east. They drove to the house and unloaded the haul into Gary’s garage. Damon said
he’d take the truck back to the Armory and would be back in under an hour. It never hurt
to be a little extra careful.

09Mar05…

It was about 2am when Gary heard the boys pull up. It must be the 9th because it was
after midnight. Gary went to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee, and then went to the
garage.

“I put a pot of coffee on,” he said, “How did you to do tonight?”

“Pour me a cup and I’ll tell you,” Derek said. “I’ll wait in the office.”

Gary got 2 cups of coffee and returned to the office. He was feeling a lot better with the
extra sleep and the thing that hurt the worst was the incision.

“So talk,” Gary said.

“I love you too Dad,” Derek laughed. “How are you feeling?”

“Better, thanks,” Gary said, “The incision hurts, but I’ll be ok.”

“No headache?” Derek asked.

“Not for the first time in a long while, no,” Gary said.

“We picked up a little stuff at the Armory, there wasn’t much there,” Derek started. “And
we have our first 2 recruits. We have them in a trailer at Grecian Isles. Tried to make
them think we don’t live anywhere around. Names are Roy and Jim. My gut tells me that
they’re ok. We borrowed a 6-by and drove out to the place we raided last night. We got
more claymores, 40mm grenades and some of that body armor.”

144
“With plates?” Gary asked. When Derek was in Kosovo, Gary offered to buy him level 4
plates for his Interceptor, but Derek had refused saying that the Army wouldn’t let him
use them.

“Level 4,” Derek said.

“Really? I thought the National Guard would only have level 3, if any,” Gary said.

“Me, too, but I sure wasn’t going to pass them up,” Derek agreed.

“Overall, how are we doing?” Gary asked.

“Well, the basement is going to be pretty full with this load Dad,” Derek replied, “I think
we can hold off for a while until we get more people and issue some of the equipment.”

“Do we have many hand grenades?” Gary asked.

“A couple of dozen, why?” Derek answered.

“I’d like maybe 4 apiece for myself, Ron and Clarence,” Gary said. “Sure wish I could
figure out a way to put M203’s on those M1A’s.”

“No can do Dad, But I could get Damon to look around for some of those Vietnam era
M-79 grenade launchers,” Derek replied.

“Does that use the same 40mm grenade as the M203?” Gary asked, interested.

“Yep. The grenades for the Mk 19 are different,” Derek said.

“Well, crap, we’ll never find any of those grenades,” Gary said.

“Dad, if Damon can find the M-79’s he can find grenades,” Derek assured his father.

“How much one of those things weigh, we’re old men boy,” Gary asked.

“Six pounds and the rounds weigh ½ pound,” Derek explained.

“If we get some,” Gary said, “We’ll put one in the OP and three up by the gate, we can
barely make it with all the magazines.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Derek acknowledged.

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 Preparations – Chapter 29 – Thumpers

“Did you get my son out of California?” the man in charge asked.

“He is on a plane right now,” one of his subordinates replied.

“I would have just left him there if it weren’t for the wife,” the first speaker announced.
“Where the hell did he get off saying, ‘I wish it were about health care, the coming water
crisis, the need for alternative energy or the economy but it won’t be’?”

“You know how kids are, they sometimes say things that aren’t in our best interest,” the
subordinate observed.

“Well, he got to sit in the hell hole for a while, so I hope he learned his lesson,” the lead-
er said.

When Damon got back to the tract from dropping off the truck, Derek mentioned the M-
79 Thumpers. Why did we want those, Damon wanted to know. Well, Derek suggested
probably because he couldn’t throw a baseball grenade far enough to escape the blast
radius. Damon pointed out that the effective casualty-producing radius was only 15 me-
ters. Derek said he knew that but he didn’t think Gary could throw anything 50’ unless it
was a load of BS. Damon said he’d look, but he didn’t know if he’d be able to find the
Thumpers.

Gary overheard the conversation and as much as he hated to admit it, Derek was right
and that was why he wanted to put an M203 on his M1A. But, if Damon could find some
of the M-79’s that would fit the bill really well. As it was, he figured he was going to re-
move 2 of the magazine pouches from his web gear. He’d just have to trust God that if
he got into another firefight, 180 rounds would be enough. But no one had bothered the
tract since 25Feb05 and that was two weeks, well actually 12 days, ago. Maybe their
luck was improving. Or, maybe those troops had just rounded everybody up and locked
them in a cage somewhere. Gary didn’t even realize that 5 miles over his head, the son
of the butthead behind this whole mess was in a 737 headed to Mt. Weather.

Now, Derek hadn’t given him much to go on so far as these 2 new recruits were con-
cerned. Apparently Derek was going to get up early and go over to see them, so maybe
he could tag along. The last time Sharon had gone to Stater brothers, they issued her a
ration book. And they weren’t just rationing a few scarce items. Nope, they were ration-
ing everything, even his beloved tp. They were allowing 1 pound of meat per family per
week.

SOBs behind this were probably sitting down to New York strips and Lobster, with a
shrimp cocktail as an appetizer and some chocolate mousse for dessert. This little re-
sistance movement they were starting here in California didn’t amount to much yet, but

146
give them a few weeks and they’d be fully staffed and equipped. Then those soldiers
who were sticking with the guard were going to start dropping like flies. What they really
needed, he reflected was some long range sniping equipment like the Barrett M82
.50BMG rifles with their fancy scopes or McMillan Tac-50s. He’d have to remember to
suggest that to Damon.

Speaking of Damon, he was really into this saving the country business. Of, maybe he
just liked stealing. Either way, it was for a good cause. And, what’s her name had really
ripped them off on the guns and ammo. He didn’t mind paying a fair price, but Walmart
had been charging $64.30 for 1,000 rounds of 5.56×45 ammo and she had asked for
$250 for the same 1,000 rounds. He guessed it was the law of supply and demand; at
least she was selling ammo.

Speaking of Walmart, it really po’d him that a minor screw up at the store at 47th and S
had ended up with Walmart not selling guns at any of its California stores. They had
pretty reasonable prices back when they were selling guns. Maybe Ron was right. May-
be after this was all over, he would sell the house for what he could get and move up to
the state of Nevada where Fleataxi lived. Fleataxi seemed like a nice guy. There were
several downsides to moving to Nevada, too, but they seemed to have pretty open guns
laws before TSHTF. No doubt this liberal bunch that had taken over the country intend-
ed to disarm the entire population.

Gary went to the living room, sat down in his recliner and put his feet up. Sometimes
that mattress gave him a backache and this was one of those times. He dozed off; hap-
py with the way his boys were working together. They had always pulled together, ever
since he’d been forced to relinquish custody of them after he married Sharon. His
brother hadn’t liked Sharon and was an attorney; however, that was a long story that
didn’t bear repeating. And people always wondered what Gary had against his late
brother. What goes around comes around and the good Lord had seen fit to take his
brother at the age of 48.

Gary awoke with a start just after 8 am. He poured another cup of coffee and nuked it to
get it hot. He made his way to the office, got a cigarette and walked into the garage to
look at last night’s haul, which the boys hadn’t put away. “They shouldn’t leave this stuff
sitting around,” he thought. He counted the MRE’s and discovered there were 30 cases;
all with 2004 manufacture dates on the boxes. Those could stay in the garage with his
other MRE’s. The 15 vests were all the same size, large. He walked over to David and
Lorrie’s and got David and two of the boys to come move the stuff to the basement.
Sharon had made a fresh pot of coffee, so he filled his mug and headed to Ron’s. Ron
had been back to the hospital the other day and had the staples pulled. Gary didn’t
know why Ron bothered making the trip; he had a pair of pliers.

“Morning partner, how are you doing?” Ron greeted him when he entered the op.

“I feel good Ron, even the incision quit hurting,” Gary reported.

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“Heard the boys pull in with a big truck last night, did they make a killing?” Ron asked.

“Not so much by volume, but we have some vests now and can outfit one squad with
everything,” Gary told him. “I was talking to Derek about putting M203’s on the M1A ri-
fles, but he says it can’t be done. Damon is going to look for some of those Vietnam
War M79 Thumpers.”

“They use the same grenades, right?” Ron said.

“You would think that the M79, M203 and the Mk-19 would all use the same grenade,
but the Mk 19 uses something different,” Gary said. “That’s your government at work.
And when they do standardize on something, they always get it wrong. They should
have adopted the FAL rifle, according to Derek, and kept the M1911.”

“Why do you want a grenade launcher?” Ron asked.

“Well, sometimes a grenade works a lot better than a rifle bullet and I don’t think I could
throw a grenade far enough that I wouldn’t be in the blast radius,” Gary explained.

“You’re not planning on being part of this squad they’re forming are you?” Ron quizzed.

“I may be old, but I’m not stupid, pal; hell no,” Gary said, “On the other hand we may
have to defend the tract again.”

“To be honest, I sort of regret giving that Super Match to you,” Ron ventured, “I don’t
regret you’re having it, but I could do a lot of shooting right here from my table.”

Gary sort of figured Ron might feel that way when he got to feel better. He’d mentioned
to Derek that if Ron wanted the rifle back, he was going to return it and Derek could use
his loaded standard model. Derek had said he understood perfectly, there was some-
thing about a man and his love for his guns. Damon had come up with a bunch of Harris
bipods and Derek had installed them on the M1A’s and Clarence’s FAL. Gary was going
to keep the 10-round mags for the loaded standard Derek would now be using, but Ron
was going to get his rifle back. Improvise. Adapt. Overcome. That movie was on Gary’s
top 10 list, that was for sure.

“I’ve got to run home for a minute Ronald McDonald, I’ll be right back,” Gary an-
nounced.

Gary went back to the house, dug out the Super Match and the web gear that went with
it. Ron wasn’t going to need the web gear and they were a trifle short of the stuff, so
Gary loaded the magazines into a box and hauled the rifle and box back to Ron’s.

“I wasn’t being an Indian giver,” Ron said when he saw his Super Match.

“Well, I didn’t think you were partner,” Gary replied. “I kept the web gear and just

148
brought the rifle and mags. You can get John to move your 7.62×51 ammo up here.”

“Already did Gar-Bear,” Ron laughed, “It’s in the closet. Hmm, added a bipod, huh?”

“Yeah, another one of Damon’s little recovery bits,” Gary said. “I need another suppres-
sor, though. I’m going to send Damon to Lancaster tonight, I think I may know where we
can find one.”

“You can take the can off the Super Match,” Ron suggested.

“No way chief,” Gary said, “It’s perfect the way it is. You can sit here in this window and
snipe like a champion and they won’t know where to look.”

“And I can rest the bipod on the window ledge,” Ron replied, “Neat.”

“How much longer are you going to be in that sling?” Gary asked.

“I thought 2 weeks,” Ron said, “But when I went to get the stitches out, they said 6 more
weeks. It’s awkward as hell only having one wing. When do you get your stitches out?”

“I’m just going to bring you my pair of pliers and let you pull them, Ron” Gary said. “Fig-
ure on the 17th of March.

10Mar05…

Yesterday had been uneventful and they had gone out last night scrounging. The way to
get Damon to excel at a task was to suggest that he couldn’t accomplish it; that it was
just beyond his abilities. Damon had brought Gary another Surefire suppressor for his
standard M1A and 6, not 4, M79’s. Where in the hell? Anyway, there were enough gre-
nades to fight a war. He had M386HE rounds, M397A1 airburst rounds and M576 buck-
shot rounds. And, this crap about the rounds not being interchangeable between the
M203 and the M79 was just that, a bunch of crap. Damon also had some M433HEDP
rounds for the M-79.

Gary mounted the suppressor on the standard M1A; he was becoming pretty adept at
changing those adapters/flashhiders. When he had his chore done, Gary hauled the
M79 down to Ron’s.

“Where did he find those?” Ron asked.

“Hell, I don’t know and I know better than to ask, partner,” Gary said, “David’s boys are
bringing you grenades in a few minutes. We’re just going to give you the High Explosive
Dual Purpose rounds and the airburst rounds. You won’t need any of the buckshot.”

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“The hell you say,” Ron remarked, “Bring me some of everything.”

“Ok, when they get here, I’ll send them back for some of the buckshot rounds,” Gary re-
lented.

“That’s better Gar-Bear,” Ron said. “I can’t believe that it’s only been 3 days since they
hauled your butt out of here in an ambulance.”

“It was probably easy surgery Ron,” Gary remarked, “When they cut into my head, there
probably wasn’t any brain matter in the way.”

“Morning guys,” Clarence said entering the op. “Gary you’re looking good. How are you
feeling?”

“Headache is gone and the stitches quit hurting,” Gary said, “I’ll get by. Stop by the
house when you go home pal, I’ve got a grenade launcher and some rounds for you.”

“Is that Ron’s Super Match?” Clarence asked, “I thought he gave it to you.”

“He’s nothing but an Indian giver Clarence,” Gary winked, “He was all over me this
morning about getting it back now that he’s feeling better.”

“Really?” Clarence asked.

“Don’t believe a word he says Clarence,” Ron boomed.

“You are a real disappointment Junior,” the leader was berating his son. “I’ve busted my
hump for 30 years in the Army and just when I have a chance at making something of
myself, you go and run your mouth off and ruin my chances.”

“Yes sir,” the son replied.

“Anyway, I got what I wanted, but in a roundabout way,” the man continued. “Did you
enjoy being in that relocation camp in the Antelope Valley?”

“No sir,” the son replied.

“What do you have to say for yourself?” the man asked.

“You’re wrong Dad,” the boy bristled, “There is already some resistance springing up in
the Antelope Valley. A lot of the National Guard troops are just disappearing. I heard
them belly aching that someone was stealing military equipment, too. I’d bet it’s the
same all over the country. You can’t ‘reeducate’ the American people any more than
you can make me think the way you want me to think. You’re just a petty tyrant.”

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The man would have had his son taken out and shot right then and there, but his wife
would have raised hell and it just wasn’t worth it. He’d have the boy put on a janitorial
detail to help keep Mt. Weather clean. He wasn’t a petty tyrant, no sir. There wasn’t
anything petty about him. By God, if it came to it, he’d jump in an Abrams and lead the
charge himself. He had some background in armor after all.

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 Preparations – Chapter 30 – The New Guys

Roy and Jim were wondering what they’d gotten themselves into. Damon and Derek
seemed to be on the up and up and they sure had an axe to grind with the government,
or so it seemed. “Well,” Roy thought, “So do Jim and I. This was pure, unadulterated
BS.”

A knock at the door made them bolt for their rifles.

“Who is it?” Jim called out.

“It’s Derek,” was the response.

“Come in,” Roy said lowering his rifle slightly.

“Did you guys get a good night’s sleep?” Derek asked.

“I don’t know about Jim,” Roy smiled, “But I did.”

“Yeah, me, too,” Jim replied.

“Any second thoughts?” Derek asked.

“As a matter of fact, yes,” Roy said.

“And?” Derek asked.

“We’re doing the right thing,” Roy said.

“Well, get your things and let’s go,” Derek said.

“Go where?” Jim asked.

“Why to headquarters,” Derek said, “Where else.”

“I didn’t hear a vehicle,” Roy said.

“We’ll walk,” Derek replied.

“Two miles?” Roy protested. “They must be out looking for us by now.”

“Not exactly,” Derek replied, “Don’t forget the MRE’s.”

Derek led Roy and Jim to Moon Shadows. They knew about this place. About 2 weeks
back, there had been one hell of a firefight right here at the entrance. The Paramedics

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had hauled a couple of the people to Lancaster to the hospital, but no one had been
killed on this side of the engagement.

Jim and Roy and been part of the troops that had been called out. They hadn’t taken
part in any of the killing of the wounded; the people were just hungry and looking for
food. If it had been up to them, Jim and he would have shot some of their fellow
Guardsmen; some of those men were just plain cruel. They went to a house at the end
of the street and upstairs. There were three old men sitting there, one with his left arm in
a sling, a second with a bandage on his head and a third, a tall thin black man with a
grin permanently etched on his face.

“Roy, Jim,” Derek said, “I’d like you to meet my father, he’s the guy with the bandage on
his head, Ron, the guy with the sling and Clarence. They’re sort of in charge of this
whole thing.”

“Oh crap,” Roy thought, “We’re being led by a bunch of has been cripples.”

Ron was the people expert. He saw the doubt flash on Roy’s face when Derek intro-
duced them.

“So, Roy,” Ron said, “I’ll bet you’re thinking something like, oh crap, we’re being led by a
bunch of has been cripples, am I right?”

“How did you…?” Roy started to say.

“Well, you’re right, we’re pretty crippled up,” Ron continued, “But we’re far from has
been. I’d prefer to think of it as our being experienced cripples.”

“Morning guys,” Clarence said, “I’m Clarence and it’s purely nice to meet you.”

“Take a seat boys,” Gary said, “And we’ll bring you up to speed on our plans.”

Gary proceeded to outline his idea. They were going to build a strike force of from 40 to
60 individuals. There would be a second strike force made up solely of the female re-
cruits. Derek was going to lead the main strike force and his wife, Mary who was also an
Army veteran, would lead the women. They had some equipment hidden away, but
needed more. More than that, they needed bodies; a lot of them and in short order.
Once they had the team built up, they were going to start major harassment operations,
but for now, they were just recruiting and building up their supplies.

“They’re watching this housing tract very closely,” Roy announced.

“We know,” Ron said, “But we’re not going to run the operations out of this tract. We’re
going to use Grecian Isles. The HQ will be here, but the strike teams will be there.”

“If you’re looking for supplies,” Jim said, “You can get all you want in Lancaster. They

153
turned that big parking lot at the Sheriff’s Department at Lancaster Boulevard and Sierra
Highway into a depot. After seeing how Damon and Derek bluffed those supplies and
vests off that bunch the other night, they shouldn’t have any trouble getting whatever
you need.”

“What about people?” Ron asked.

“I know almost 20 people ready to bolt,” Roy said, “If they haven’t already.”

“I know some that Roy doesn’t,” Jim added.

“You understand our rules, right boys?” Gary asked. “Single people only, with no ties.”

“But women are ok, right?” Roy asked.

“As long as they have no attachments, yes,” Gary answered.

“If you want, Derek, we can get that deuce and a half tonight and make a run to the de-
pot in Lancaster,” Jim suggested. “Roy and I can change into some civvies and make
the rounds during the daytime and try and recruit people that qualify.”

“Fair enough, but you take them to the trailer park,” Derek said, “And don’t say a single
word about the housing tract. Damon and I will have a talk with these recruits and if they
pass muster, they’re in. If they don’t, they’re dead. Just be careful whom you invite in. If
there are too many ringers, it will reflect badly on your judgment.”

“If you think any of them are ringers,” Roy said, “Tell me and I’ll shoot them myself.”

“The two of you get back to the trailer park and start recruiting,” Derek said. “We’ll come
by each day and check on the new people. And, don’t think I don’t appreciate the offer
Roy, but Damon needs to keep in practice with that shotgun of his, so we’ll take care of
any ringers.”

That was an insurance policy of sorts. If Roy or Jim were a ringer, they could fake killing
other ringers that they brought in. You just couldn’t be too careful. The boys would go to
Lancaster tonight and get more supplies. Even though the basement was full, there
were a lot of empty trailers at Grecian Isle where they could store the plunder. In fact,
maybe they ought to move some of the stuff out of the basement and use it just for a
gunroom.

They would just establish themselves as the supply sergeants of a Guard unit that was
coming into the area and with a set of fake orders generated on Gary’s computer, get
the US government to inadvertently sponsor the revolt that was brewing. According to
the Ham radio, there were small groups like theirs all over the US. Maybe in time they
could hook up with the other groups and become more effective, but for now, they
would go it alone.

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Jim and Roy left to go back to the trailer. There were all kinds of clothes in the closets,
they’d noticed, so it wouldn’t be hard to find something to fit. They had to give credit to
these Olsen boys; they were pretty well organized for a couple of farmers from the Mid-
west. Jim occasionally listened to KTPI and a lyric came to mind, something by Hank
Williams, Jr. what was it called? Oh yeah, A Country Boy Can Survive. Well whether
they were farmers or not, those two country boys had it together. And those three old
guys seemed to have their crap together, too. That Clarence was pretty quiet and that
grin was all but painted on his face. He seemed to be so happy. What they hell was
there to be happy about? Well guys, Damon hadn’t shot you with that nasty little shot-
gun of his, had he? You should be happy, too.

Wesley Clark had to admit that he’d overestimated his capacity and underestimated the
resilience of the American public. The plan had gone off without a hitch and everything
was moving along well until they’d run into logistics problems and hadn’t been able to
supply the refugees from the nuked cities with hot food and warm accommodations.
Then, the dissatisfaction had set in.

They forced Bush to record a speech, but they must have missed something in that
speech; rather than calm down the population, it seemed to inflame them. Junior was
right about one thing, there was trouble brewing in that suburb of Los Angeles, what
was it called; oh yes, Palmdale. He was just going to have to send in some regular Ar-
my people, these National Guard types weren’t cutting the mustard.

That was one thing his fellow liberal Clinton had gotten wrong; he’d cut the military far
too small and then that butthead Bush had gotten the US mixed up in Afghanistan and
Iraq. The troops were on the way home now, the war in Iraq had been cancelled on ac-
count of lack of interest, his interest, and the UN was doing fine in Kosovo without the
US’s help.

Clark didn’t realize that he was cutting his own throat bringing those troops home.
These were men and women of the American armed forces fighting for freedom in far
off lands. Bringing them home would just fuel the fires of discontent that were starting to
burn in America. He guessed he’d kept himself in the shadows for long enough, it was
time to put in an appearance and reassure the public that the government was in safe
hands. In 1981 President Reagan was injured after a failed assassination attempt and
Alexander Haig famously blundered on TV, claiming constitutional authority (“I am in
control here”), when, in fact, the order of succession places the secretary of state below
the vice president, the speaker of the House and the president pro tempore of the Sen-
ate. Haig, it should be remembered was also a former NATO Commander just like
Clark. Maybe it was something that rubbed off on people who were placed in charge of
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It was a shame Haig was a Republican; he’d fit
right in with this bunch of zealots who were trying to save America from itself.

155
°

It should be remembered that in its heyday, before the population glut, the Antelope Val-
ley was a haven for the so-called militia groups. They hadn’t gone away, they’d gone
underground. She had kept them well supplied operating a storefront business and a
business out of her home. You might be surprised what you would find if you started
looking under beds and in closets there in the AV, especially in Lancaster. She would
have bought Gary’s Mini-14, tricked out as it was, if it weren’t for the fact that there were
so many people in the store that day. And, she’d have paid a fair price instead of the
$250 she’d quoted the guy. Her husband and she had actually made it out of California
and all the way to Denver. It was like going out of the frying pan and into the fire. Den-
ver had been spared the bomb, but not the onslaught of federalized National Guard
troops. You lived and learned.

Damon and Derek pulled in to the supply depot in Lancaster shortly after dark, driving
the 6-by. Derek had spent a lot of time on Gary’s computer that day and used the floppy
disk of forms to generate a ton of orders. He ran off blank requisition forms and filled
them in with a ballpoint. Damon faked the signatures. They didn’t have any trouble at all
getting established and came away with many prizes. Gary had cornered the boys and
told them to get an M82 or whatever was available. Well, they had the 2 McMillan TAC-
50s (US designation Mk 15), a lot of the Interceptor vests, M16A2’s, ammo, magazines,
grenades, 40mm grenades and enough M203’s for every rifle and then some. They had
even managed a couple of M40s, an afterthought. In addition, they had ACUs, boots,
field jackets, helmets and night vision equipment including scopes, binoculars and the
14’s. Derek had made it a point to get lots of radios, too. Old Ron was going to need
help to handle all of the different radios he had. They would probably just put a couple
bunks in the OP and Clarence, Ron and Gary would end up manning the OP 24/7. The
sniper ammo was Hornady A-MAX 750gr Match, Mk211MP, M118LR, Mk 262, .300
Winchester magnum and .338 Lapua, just in case.

Jim and Roy had a pretty good day themselves. There were 17 candidates safely
tucked away at Grecian Isles waiting for screening by Damon and Derek. They had in-
advertently brought in one ringer, but that was ok, Damon and Derek would find the in-
dividual and dispose of her. Derek didn’t expect perfection out of Roy and Jim. Hell, up
to 10% ringers was to be expected as far as Derek was concerned. The problem was
that you sometimes got too close to people and didn’t really know them. That’s why
there was all of the secrecy and the isolation. The candidates were just average men
and women; most with their heads screwed on straight, but some whom for whatever
reason, were misguided. Still, the security of the operation required that they be elimi-
nated. It was like Derek had told Roy and Jim, once you knew anything about the opera-
tion, you knew too much unless you were a part of it.

Training was going to be strictly OJT. These people had already been through boot
camp and knew how a fighting unit was supposed to work. There were going to start
operations as soon as they had two squads put together. Then, as additional people

156
came aboard, the new folks would be integrated into the existing squads and some of
the experienced people used to run the newly formed groups. The Army had done it that
way for a long time and you either ‘earned your wings’ or died. They’d find someplace
safe to use as a firing range, maybe out by Devil’s Punchbowl in the mountains to the
south and east. They weren’t the Delta Force, but give them a little time and they’d take
them on too.

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 Preparations – Chapter 31 – The OP

11Mar05…

“Would you look at all the radios,” Ron complained to Clarence and Gary, “I only have
one arm I can use here, you know.”

“Derek said something about moving in a bunk bed and the three of us just living right
here in this room,” Gary commented.

“That ought to be a formula for success,” Ron said, the sarcasm dripping from his voice.

“Oh I don’t know Ron, it might be ok,” Clarence said, “All we have to do is use the same
brand of deodorant. I was thinking maybe Strawberry.”

“Huh?” Ron said.

“Ron, it’s a BPT,” Gary laughed. “Ok Clarence, we’ll use Strawberry.”

“I was just kidding, Gary,” Clarence protested.

“I know Clarence, me too,” Gary winked at Ron.

Ron looked around the small bedroom. By the time they put in a bunk bed and got all
the equipment set up, the room was going to be nothing but elbows and butts.

“Hey Gar,” Ron said, “You’d better have David bring down your other two office chairs. I
don’t think there’s going to be room for the equipment and the bunks. We’ll just have to
sleep in the chairs.”

“Nah,” Gary said, “We’ll put in a crib mattress and two chairs. And, we’ll work 16 on and
8 off.”

“What I don’t understand is why we don’t just put in 2 chairs and no mattress,” Clarence
said. “The person who is off can go home and sleep.”

“Man,” Ron said, “I love it when a plan comes together.”

What they finally worked out was that the person coming on shift would sit in front of the
window seat for 8 hours. Then, he’d move to the radio chair for the next 8 hours. After
that, he’d get to go home for 8 hours. The guy at the window got to observe and, since
he was the freshest, would get to shoot the rifle and/or a Thumper. How long they could
keep it up was anyone’s guess, but if ever there were 3 men who could work together in
such a haphazard plan, it was The Three Amigos! Gary had, by the way, retrieved his
hat. He put a large Band-Aid over the hole and wore the hat as sort of a badge of honor.
That hat had a lot of life left in it yet; the grease ring around the brim was still an inch

158
away from the grease ring extending out from the hatband. When the rings met, he was
going to submit the hat to Guinness as a world record. That would probably be another
three years, if he lived that long.

Getting back to the plan, there were about a dozen or so different kinds of radios sitting
on the table and floor. Since Gary was the Ham, they decided that he should try to fig-
ure out how each radio worked and then he could explain it to the less technically gifted.
Six hours and 6,000 cuss words later, Gary threw up his hands and stormed out of the
room, muttering under his breath. Well, maybe the plan hadn’t come together after all.
Why couldn’t the military just have a single radio that covered every channel and every
possible encryption scheme? In fact, the military was working on just such a system,
JTRS, but it was still in the development/testing stage. Gary came back a few minutes
later.

“Look guys,” Gary admitted, “I’m in way over my head here. Maybe having all of these
military radio sets isn’t all that hot of an idea.”

“Gar-Bear, we need those communications,” Ron said.

“What for?” Gary asked. As nearly as I can figure out, some of that stuff is ground-to-air
and some of it is ground-to-ground. They got AM, FM and IDFKM.”

“What’s IDFKM?” Clarence asked.

“I don’t fricking know modulation,” Gary laughed. “That tyrant who took over the country
is going to die of old age before I ever figure these radios out.”

“You know who took over the country?” Clarence asked.

“That Wannabe Wesley Clark,” Gary said, “I thought you had it figured out by now.”

“Well, that makes sense,” Ron said, “He always did remind me of Alexander Haig.”

“Who?” Clarence asked.

“You know Clarence,” Ron said, “Remember when Reagan got shot and that ex-general
told the country, “I am in control here.”

“Oh that guy,” Clarence said, “What does he have to do with Clark?”

“Nothing really, except they were both commanders of NATO,” Gary explained.

“My, my.”

“Look we sort of got off the subject of radios,” Gary said, “Why don’t we let Derek take
the military sets over to the trailer park and the soldier boys can play with them? We can

159
work 8 on and 16 off and keep the OP manned 24/7.”

“You mean 7/24, right?” Ron asked.

“Ok Ron we’ll man it 7 hours a day, 24 days a week, if you’d rather,” Gary laughed.

[Never pass up a chance to shoot one over the bow of a friend, right friend? - Inside
joke for Fleataxi]

“So, who gets what shift?” Ron asked.

“We could have someone pull a double shift every 3rd day and resume the rotation at
that point,” Clarence suggested, “That way, we’d be rotating shifts.”

“Suits me,” Gary said.

“I agree,” Ron said.

The three men had just wasted a whole day on that little exercise.

“Derek, would you pull that military comm. gear out of the OP and put it in the trailer
park?” Gary asked.

“Why, I went to a lot of work to get you that gear?” Derek objected.

“And I appreciate that son,” Gary said, “But it’s over my head. We have enough trouble
just running the Ham gear. Did you interview those recruits?”

“Yep and we had a ringer,” Derek said.

“What did you do with him, or don’t I want to know?” Gary asked.

“Her and let’s just say that Damon got a little target practice and let it go at that,” Derek
replied.

“Oh,” Gary thought, “Probably called her Mutt just before he pulled the trigger, too.”

In the coming days, it would become apparent that word somehow filtered out that one
of the people that Roy and Jim had recruited turned out to be a ‘spy’ planted to catch
militia groups. From that point on, the first words out of prospective candidates mouths
was usually something like, “I ain’t no spy”.

17Mar05…

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The big day had arrived and true to his word, Gary showed up at Ron’s with a pair of
pliers. Ron had completely forgotten that Gary had said something about pulling the
staples sealing his incision with a pair of pliers. Gary reminded him and Ron grudgingly
started to pull the staples.

“Ouch, take it easy,” Gary complained.

“It was your idea to pull the staples with a pair of pliers, partner, don’t blame me,” Ron
said defensively.

“I’ve had all kinds of staples pulled and they just used fancy pliers, PAL,” Gary said, “Try
to just take a hold of the staple and not my head.”

“Yeah, you’re a real tough guy aren’t you,” Ron said pulling the second staple.

“OUCH, I said just the staple,” Gary hollered. “Stop! Never mind, get me a hand mirror
and I’ll do it myself.”

Ron went to the bathroom and brought back a mirror. He held the mirror and Gary
pulled the staples. If the truth were told, it hurt worse than when Ron had done it, but
Gar-Bear wasn’t going to give Ronald the satisfaction. It sure was good it was a small
incision with only 5 staples, or Gary would have probably left the last one in and let it
rust out. The rotation schedule was working out well and the squad was up to 33 men
plus Damon and Derek. David’s boys wanted in but Derek was able to convince them
without hurting their feelings too badly that they just didn’t have the experience. Howev-
er, he wanted them to feel a part of, as the expression goes, and assigned them duties
to support his squads.

It was Sunday and Derek had decided that it was time to get off the dime. The CNG had
set up a command post in the AV Mall at 10th Street West and Avenue P. Derek was
going to snipe from the K-Mart roof on the other side of 10th St. and Damon was going
to cover his back and spot. A second sniper team was on top of the fire station straight
south of the parking lot on the other side of P. The third sniper pair was on top of the 24-
hour fitness center. Derek had the M1A and the other two teams were outfitted with the
M-40’s. The other 29 men were spread out in the shadows of some of the buildings to
provide cover fire, if needed.

They had been observing the HQ for about 5 days. Every evening, the time varied from
9 to 11, the unit commands assembled for a briefing that lasted from 30 minutes to an
hour. The CNG troops were arrogant and security was pretty relaxed.

Derek felt the tap on his shoulder. He was using the day scope because the parking lot
was lit up like a festival was taking place. He shifted the M1A, spotted the target and
slowly squeezed the trigger. You could barely hear the report from the rifle and an of-
ficer went down. The guards flattened themselves on the ground looking for the source
of the shot they hadn’t heard. Nothing. Then one of the guards jerked and dropped his

161
rifle. The man next to him half rose to run and went down, the back of his head missing.
Apart from the grunts and cries the men made when they’d been hit, not a sound had
been heard and the officers inside of the cp were unaware of the attack in progress. The
men moved from the shadows to get within range of their 40mm grenade launchers.
Everyone was equipped with a 2-meter hand held radio with an earplug.

“Now,” the command came in their earpieces. There was a succession of plops and the
tent went up, hit simultaneously with 4 HEDP rounds. They moved in, dispatched the
wounded and grabbed all of the maps and papers they could find. The elapsed time
from Derek’s first shot until they had the documents and had cleared the area was un-
der 4 minutes.

Back at Grecian Isle, they sorted through the papers.

“Derek, check this out,” Roy said.

“What do you have?” Derek said taking the document.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but that’s a list of the relocation camps in southern California,”
Roy replied.

“You’re right,” Derek said, “I’ve got to get this to the OP. Good work tonight people. I’ll
let you know tomorrow what the next target is. Roy, could I have a private word with
you?”

Roy rose and followed Derek out of the trailer.

“What do you need boss?” Roy asked.

“I have to recommend improvements, if we need any, do you have any suggestions?”

Derek asked.

“One,” Roy said, “It seems to me we didn’t need to take all 35 people tonight; we could
have gotten by with 12.”

“Anything else?” Derek asked.

“Well, it would be nice to have a cold case of beer in the fridge when we get back from
an operation,” Roy said raising his hands, “You asked.”

“Trailer 37 Roy,” Derek said, “But keep down the noise.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 32 – Relocation Centers

18Mar05…

“How did the operation go?” Ron asked.

“Good guys 1, Bad guys 0,” Derek said.

“Any trouble?” Gary asked.

“No. We have one suggestion,” Derek said. “We took all 35 people and only needed
about 12. It was suggested that we only take enough to do the job.”

“Any other suggestions?” Gary asked again.

“Only that we have some cold beer on hand for after an operation,” Derek said.

“I thought you...” Gary started to say.

“I did, but I didn’t tell them until the subject was brought up.

“Did you recover any good intel from the command post?” Clarence asked.

“How about a list of all the relocation centers in southern California?” Derek said, smil-
ing. “We haven’t been through it all, but I thought that you should see the list.”

“Forty?” Gary was surprised.

“So it appears, Dad,” Derek said.

“Well, what do you two think?” Gary said passing the list to Ron.

“I think that is too many camps to hit all at once,” Ron said handing the list to Clarence,
“And once we hit one, they will beef up security at the others.”

“Ron, I heard there are some other groups in the AV, how about we divide up the list
and share it with them?”

“Derek?” Ron asked.

“We only know of 3 other groups, but there are probably a dozen.”

“How many camps could our group hit at once?” Gary asked.

“With the number of people we have, 3,” Derek suggested.

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“Do you have any other potential recruits?” Clarence asked.

“Maybe after the word about tonight gets around,” Derek suggested, “But, and it’s a big
but, I think they will try to step up efforts to infiltrate the groups, so I’m a little leery.”

“If you just had one more person,” Gary said, “You would have 3 squads of 12.”

“How about Matt?” Ron asked.

“The closest he’s ever been to the military was to attend the Open House at Edwards
AFB,” Gary replied, “No, I don’t think so.”

“There’s a gal in Mary’s group we could use until we get one more man,” Derek sug-
gested.

“I thought we were going to keep the units unisex,” Ron said.

“We were, but she’s ex-Marine Corps,” Derek replied. “We could use her on one opera-
tion, just to see how she works out.”

“What did she do in the Corps?” Clarence asked.

“Squad leader,” Derek answered.

“It’s ok by me for one operation. What do you two think?”

“One operation,” Ron said, “But what are we going to do if she works out well? Will she
be willing to go back to the female squad?”

“She’d do it if we asked, Ron,” Derek said, “But I’m having second thoughts about this
unisex squad concept. We have 13 women besides Mary. If we were to split them up
among the squads, we could take out 4 relocation camps at a shot. And another thing, I
doubt they will be able to up the security at the remaining camps because they will be
too busy trying to round up the refugees.”

“I seem to remember telling you that you could run your outfit as you please,” Gary said,
“So if Ron and Clarence agree, maybe you should go ahead and do that. Ron, what do
you think?”

“If we hit 4 camps ourselves and give the locations of some of the other camps to the
AV groups we know about, it would sure throw a monkey wrench in FEMA’s face. I say
go.”

“Clarence, what do you think?” Gary asked.

“I don’t know, but I’ll go along with whatever Derek recommends,” Clarence answered.

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“Looks like you have a go Derek, when do you plan to start?” Gary asked.

“Wednesday night,” Derek said.

“Ok give us a list of frequencies and times and report in using the Bible code,” Gary
said.

“I made up a list of prepackaged phrases, we can use Dad,” Derek said, handling Gary
a list. “It should cover 99% of all situations and will be a lot easier than dragging around
a Bible.”

“Are you going to hit one set of camps and then return, or hit all of the camps on your
list?” Gary asked.

“All of them, over the course of one week,” Derek said, “Then we lay low for a week and
start something else.”

“Keep your powder dry,” Gary said. “And let me know how many groups are going to be
in on this project with you.”

Derek was on the spot. He hadn’t even known about the militia groups until Gary had
said something about them back in ‘91 or ‘92 when Damon and he were out on summer
visitation. It was a classic case of overplaying your hand. He headed for the trailer park
to talk to Roy.

“Roy, you said you’re from Lancaster didn’t you?” Derek inquired.

“Lived there my whole life,” Roy smiled.

“I overheard Jim and you and a couple of others talking about the militia groups and
mentioned that to the old guys,” Derek explained. “How would I get in touch with these
other groups?”

“Might be tough, boss,” Roy frowned, “They don’t exactly walk around with jackets with
militia logos.”

“Ask around would you. We need to get in touch with them within the next 24 hours,”
Derek said. “Oh, we’re going to integrate Mary’s units into the squads. We have a big
operation starting and we need more people. It’s going to take a week or so.”

“What’s up?” Roy asked.

“That list you found, the one with all of the relocation camps,” Derek said, “What would

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happen if someone were to take out the guards at one of those camps?”

“All hell would break loose, probably,” Roy speculated, his eyebrows shooting up.

“And if someone were to hit all of the camps in say a one week period?” “Derek pursued
the thought.

“Oh crap, all hell really would break loose,” Roy said, “How are we going to manage
that?”

“That’s why I need those other militia groups,” Derek explained. “We’re going to divide
our group into 4 squads of 12 persons each. You’re going to be in charge of one squad,
and I’ll take a second. Any ideas on who should lead the other two?”

“I say Jim and Damon, but I want Jim with me,” Roy answered.

“And where I go, Damon goes,” Derek said.

“You could get Becky,” Roy said, “She was a squad leader in the Corps. Other than
that, I don’t really know.”

“Damon and I will figure that out. Why don’t you and Jim get in contact with the other 3
militia groups, somehow,” Derek suggested. “And when you do, give them each one of
these list of targets and explain what I explained to you. If there’s time, I’d like to meet
with them, but if not, so be it.”

“No promises, but we’ll give it a shot,” Roy agreed.

It’s never wise to show your hole cards; Roy hadn’t. At one time, before he’d joined the
Guard, he’d been part of one of the Lancaster militia groups. That’s how he’d met Jim;
Jim had been a member of another group and they gone out to the desert back in ‘97
and done joint exercises with their camouflaged 4x4’s and paint guns. The AV militia
groups were very active, but they had turned secretive when the population soared
starting in the ‘80’s. Some of the folks were pretty long in the tooth, but there never
seemed to be an end of new members graduating from Lancaster High School. And, it
wouldn’t be too smart to look under their beds, either; you’d probably meet up with the
guy’s pet rattlesnake!

There were more AR-15’s with auto sears in Lancaster than there were M16’s in the
CNG. Some of these people acted like they’d never heard of the Assault Weapons Ban
and that the California gun laws were a shopping list rather than a prohibition. Hell, one
group even had a .50 caliber club. You wouldn’t find any of those people in relocation
camps either. The way Roy had heard it, the Cuban Missile Crisis back in the 1960’s
had spooked a lot of people in Lancaster who worked at Edwards AFB. They’d seen

166
those B-47’s on the flight line loaded with nukes and had gone home and started stock-
ing up. Then, their children had picked up the ball and run with it later on. The hardest
part was getting from Palmdale to Lancaster. If Derek wanted a meeting with the lead-
ers of those groups, Jim and he would oblige and they’d have that meeting tonight.

This group they’d put together in so short a time was on a first name basis. Not because
they’d all become pals, but because you couldn’t tell someone something you didn’t
know. Where 2 or 3 men had the same first names, nicknames were used. Derek
couldn’t let Damon lead a squad, because for all of his accomplishments, Damon wasn’t
the leader type. He was more like the Rebel Without a Cause type. And a very good
thief. One of the more common names was Bob and they’d ended up using the names
of the 7 dwarfs to keep the guys straight. Derek had talked to ‘Doc’ and put him in
charge of the 4th squad.

Derek had said something to his brother about the .50s needing suppressors and Da-
mon said they already had Elite Iron suppressors. Derek almost had to be careful what
he talked about around Damon. The M-40’s had come with suppressors. Altogether,
they had 9 suppressed sniper rifles, the M1A, 2 M-40’s and 4 M82’s, 2 TAC-50s and
that didn’t include Ron’s Super Match or his Dad’s loaded model M1A.

The leaders of the militia groups had been doing their own thing, but were itching for
some real action. That night, Derek had outlined the plan to them at the hastily assem-
bled meeting and they had all agreed. One of the leaders went by Manny, the second
by Moe and the third by Jack. There was something about those names, but Derek
couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

19Mar05…

“Ok,” Derek said, “I talked to the other leaders, and they’re in.”

“Who are they?” Gary asked.

“One is named Manny, the second Moe and the third Jack,” Derek answered.

When the laugher died down, Derek asked what was so funny.

“Nothing, Derek,” Ron said, “But from now on, just refer to them as the Pep Boys, and
we’ll know who you are talking about.”

“Huh?” Derek responded.

“It’s a chain of car parts stores son,” Gary explained, “Called the Pep Boys and the
three founders were guys named Manny, Moe and Jack.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 33 – Lemmings

They were going to hit 4 locations Wednesday night. That figured to be the easiest
night. After that, they were going to reform in the Sierra foothills east of Fresno and di-
vide into 3 enhanced squads of 16 each. Each of the four-militia groups was going to
take out 10 camps. Then, as had been mentioned, they were going to lay low for a week
while things sorted themselves out. This ought to be fun to watch, hundreds of thou-
sands of people going in all directions with the CNG and FEMA folks trying to round
them up. Of course, some of them might come through the Antelope Valley, but the
camps were mostly located in the areas where the people lived. The Pep Boys were go-
ing to take out the 2 Relocation Camps in the Antelope Valley, among others, and send
those people scurrying back to the San Fernando Valley.

“Why do we have to take the camps furthest to the north?” Damon asked Derek.

“Well, bro, we had an extra day to organize and I wanted to see California,” Derek re-
plied. “The only place Dad ever took us was to Disneyland, Magic Mountain, Knott’s
Berry Farm, Marine Land, and the LaBrea Tar Pits. He must have been the original Dis-
neyland Daddy. I think there must be more to California than amusement parks.”

“Speaking of that,” Damon said, “That was a pretty crappy trick Mom played on Dad,
making us wear our oldest worn out clothes and sending us to California with big empty
suitcases.”

“Maybe that’s why she died of lung cancer Damon,” Derek said, “She didn’t even
smoke. You have to give Dad and Sharon credit though, they managed to pay every
penny of child support, keep us in clothes and braces and everything else. You know,
Mom had full custody, she could have covered us with her insurance instead of making
Dad cover us with his.”

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Damon said. “So we’re going to Monterey, huh? Where’s
Monterey?”

“Do you mean besides the same place it’s always been? On the coast, south of San
Francisco a ways,” Derek explained.

They arrived in the Monterey area on Wednesday afternoon. The FEMA camp was at
Pebble Beach. From the looks of it, there were maybe 3-dozen guards, some in towers
and some on foot. They had used 4 2½-ton trucks and just acted like a CNG unit being
relocated. Gary had suggested that they take I-5 to 152 and then go to Gilroy, the garlic
capital. From there, they’d taken 101 to Salinas and 68 to Monterey. This was going to
be tough, it was a very large camp and the guards were well spread out. It was going to
be a reach for the Derek’s sniper rifle, but the other team had a .50 cal so they could
really reach out and touch someone. Derek took Damon’s advice and moved 8 people
close in with their silenced M16’s. They could take out the foot patrols and the two snip-
er teams would work on the towers.

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It had worked like a charm. None of the guards even knew what had hit them. But the
people just milled around inside of the camp as if they liked the place. Finally, Derek
had gone to the camp and gotten on the PA system.

“You’re free, people,” he announced. A few bolted for the gates, but many just sat
stunned. He was just about to make a second announcement when they began to
move, like lemmings to the sea. The squad mounted up and bugged out before they got
caught in the growing stampede. They back tracked, taking 152 to 99 and south to the
Fresno area. Everyone assembled in a little community named Tollhouse. They were
going to lie over for a day, reassemble and strike again Friday night. They compared
notes on how the operations at the 4 camps had gone and what they needed to do to
improve their approach. Clearly, they needed more snipers.

“Damon, how about you round up some M-24 SWS units or some more M-40’s?” Derek
asked.

“What’s an M-24 SWS?” Damon asked.

“It’s that new bolt action 7.62×51 rifle that Remington builds for the Army,” Derek said.

“What do they look like?” Damon asked.

“They are a bolt action 7.62×51 caliber rifle with an adjustable buttstock,” Derek ex-
plained. “They’ll probably be in a case with a bunch of spares and maybe a night scope.
For sure, they’ll have a Leopold scope. Don’t you know anything?”

“I was an ET in the Navy Derek, what do I know about rifles?” Damon protested. “I can
repair and operate every piece of comm gear the Navy has.”

“If you’re such a whiz with comm gear, why didn’t you help Dad and the guys out?”
Derek said.

“Nobody asked,” Damon said, “And the first thing I learned in boot camp was never vol-
unteer.”

“Get suppressors for the rifles, too,” Derek said shaking his head. “And, the M-24 uses
special ammo called M-118LR, so get a few cases of it while you’re at it.”

“Anything else while I’m at it?” Damon asked. “How about a hot and cold running
blonde?”

“Nah,” Derek said, “Dad tried that. Didn’t work out too well.”

“I met her,” Damon said, “Met both of them, they were pretty.”

169
“Yeah, I’ll bet,” Derek said, “Pretty on the outside, but ugly to the core.”

“Well, that Marie did try to get me in bed, now that you mention it,” Damon said.

“You should have helped yourself,” Derek said.

“I would have,” Damon said, “But I was afraid the stupid would rub off. If her brain was
1 th
∕10 the size of her boobs, she would have had an IQ of 300.”

23Mar05…

The days didn’t seem to mean much anymore. Hell, the three old guys were using an
old calendar and had the dates all screwed up. That didn’t make a lot of sense, all they
had to do was look at their computers, but no, they had reset the dates on the comput-
ers to match the calendar rather than the other way around. Anyway, the operations at
the other camps had gone off without a hitch and people were running about all over the
place. The CNG and FEMA, as predicted, were totally overwhelmed. One bunch had
tried to enter Palmdale proper, but a bunch of the locals had driven them off. Most of the
refugees in the AV had headed back to the Valley and it turned out that a lot of them
had a shotgun or a .22 in their closet. The Guard was taking a beating and the FEMA
people had stopped wearing the black jackets with FEMA emblazoned on the back.

The Palmdale militia was safely tucked away in the trailer park waiting out the chaos.
They were running a limited intelligence operation and it appeared that they were in
trouble. After the CNG and FEMA fold had wasted a few days trying to round up the ref-
ugees, they’d given up and done a little reorganization themselves. Now, they were as-
sembled in several locations, and it looked like they might have ironed out the wrinkles.
Those that remained were a dedicated lot and they weren’t slouches.

“If word of this California situation gets out,” Clark said, “We’re screwed.”

“We’ve been monitoring the Ham bands General,” an adviser said, “And it’s already got-
ten out.”

“And?” Clark asked.

“We had no idea that there were so many militia groups around the country,” the adviser
continued. “It’s not like an organized attack; it’s just picking away at the camp admin-
istrations and letting the people out. We couldn’t contain the situation if we had 20 Divi-
sions. And, those troops start arriving back from Europe and the Middle East any day
now. You factor them into the equation and I think our hind ends are grass. All that radio
speech you made did was to inflame the public.”

“Well, reorganize the FEMA and Guard Units and force Bush to make another speech,”

170
Clark said. “Have him say that people loyal to him have succeeded in putting down the
coup and that he’s back in charge. By the way, did anyone figure out what he said in the
previous speech that set everyone off?”

“We did, yes,” the adviser said, “Do you remember the bit about him having a revelation
on the 6th and 8th days? That was a Bible code and it referred to the Book of Revela-
tions, Chapter 6, Verse 8.”

“Was there anything else in the speech that gave us away?” Clark asked, “Surely it can’t
be that simple.”

“Not that we know of, no,” the adviser assured him.

“Well then, get him to make another speech and get it on the air tonight,” Clark said,
“We’ve got to get the population settled down.”

Bush was only more than willing to make another speech. It went out on the radio the
night of 19Mar05.

The three old geezers and probably most of the country were assembled around radio
to listen to the speech.

My fellow Americans,

“Your government has been restored. The traitor, Wesley Clark, has been arrested and
imprisoned by your government. Your government is reorganizing its military and FEMA
forces to help the people. Your government has recalled the troops from Iraq, Korea
and the Middle East.

Posse Comitatus and the Writ of Habeas Corpus have been restored and the FEMA po-
lice powers rescinded. Internet communications and telephone communications are no
longer being fully monitored by your government.

Unfortunately, your government must continue food rationing for the present moment.

Barbara and I are grateful for the efforts made by all Americans to restore order and it
has been restored. Be of good cheer.

“Bullcrap,” Ron said, “It’s all a lie. It was more of than your government crap and Barba-
ra is his mother, not his wife.”

“I wouldn’t believe a word about the Internet and the phone either,” Gary added.

“What is his wife’s name?” Clarence asked.

“Laura, dimwit,” Ron teased Clarence.

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“Oh, the way he said it, it sounded so natural,” Clarence observed.

“They must be getting worried,” Gary suggested, “Or why would they have risked letting
him give another speech, especially one that was so obviously a lie?”

“What I don’t understand is why they didn’t pick up on the ‘your government’ bit,” Ron
said. “Is Wesley Clark that dumb?”

“Must be, chief,” Gary replied, “Bush pulled it off again. Say, you know all those prob-
lems we were having with those military radios? Derek reminded me that Damon was
an ET in the Navy and knows how to operate and repair all of that equipment.”

“Why didn’t he say something?” Clarence asked.

“He told Derek that no one asked and he wasn’t going to volunteer,” Gary related.

“He sounds a lot like you, Gar-Bear,” Ron observed.

“Ah, forget it,” Gary said, “We have enough radio equipment already.” (Sour grapes?)

“What’s our next operation going to be?” Clarence asked.

“I think we should lay low for a few more days, Clarence, and let the dust settle,” Ron
suggested.

“Yeah, that speech was probably intended to get the population to settle down” Gary
said, “So let’s oblige. If we take a few days off, maybe they won’t trip to the fact that
Bush put another fast one over on them.

Clark had listened to the speech. It had sounded fine to him right up to the point where
Dubya had said Barbara. What a bunch of idiots. He asked that the adviser who had
been in charge of the speech project be brought to the command center at Mt. Weather.

“Did you screen that speech?” Clark asked.

“Sounded fine to me, General,” the adviser said.

“Butthead,” Clark said, drawing his service pistol, “Barbara is his mother, not his wife.”
General Clark shot the adviser right between the eyes. One of the other advisers taking
in the scene was reminded of Saddam Hussein. What had they gotten themselves into?

172
 Preparations – Chapter 34 – The Lull

It was probably just as well that they were taking time off. Damon wasn’t his usual self
and was having trouble coming up with any additional sniper rifles. He was just looking
in the wrong places, but it took him a while to figure that out. It finally occurred to him
that he might find some in Bakersfield and off he went to search. Bakersfield was a
scary place because a lot of people who lived in LA fled not back to the Valley, but fur-
ther away as had been their original intent. Normally a city of about 220,000, the popu-
lation had swelled to closer to ½ million. There were all kinds of resources for the adept
scrounger, however. There was a CHP office, the Kern County Sheriff’s office and Bak-
ersfield Police department. The CNG also had established a major presence near the
city and Damon fit right in wearing his uniform.

Nobody paid him much attention and it took under 3 hours to appropriate the SWAT
equipment held by the LEO’s. Not only did he come away with some of the police sniper
rifles, he made a killing on the H & K MP5’s. “Maybe,” he thought on the drive back to
Palmdale, “I should try one of these machine guns.” Derek told him to help himself, but
if he took one, he was going to have to come up with more 9mm ammo, because 9mm
wasn’t that prevalent in the housing tract.

Ninety minutes later, there was enough 9mm ammo to fight a major battle, because
Damon loved a challenge. Derek was singularly unimpressed with the 9mm MP5. The
only vest the bullets would penetrate 100% of the time was level I. If the person you
shot was wearing a level IIa or higher rated vest, you’d be better off with a ball bat. He
told Damon to take one for himself and to put the rest of them in the basement. Or, give
them to the old guys in the OP; they’d probably be fascinated with the toy guns.

As it was, Derek felt they were under gunned with the M16’s. What he really wanted
was some of that new ammo, the M995 5.56×45 and the M993 7.62×51 cartridges. The
new 7.62×51 ammo would punch through a level IV vest like a hot knife through butter
and the 5.56×45 ammo was nearly as good. When he told Damon to try and find some,
Damon almost flipped. Why the hell, he wanted to know, hadn’t his brother said some-
thing earlier? There were all kinds of the crap where he’d gotten the 9mm stuff. Good
Derek told him, go for it. Derek got Roy and Jim to go along, he didn’t want Damon to
strain himself.

The consolidation of the federal forces was presenting real problems. While there were
half as many FEMA folks and CNG, those that remained were the nasty ones. Anyone
with a compassionate bone in his or her body had bugged out since the attacks on the
camps. Some had joined militias, but most had simply found their families and gone into
hiding. The lull had the negative effect of allowing the feds to consolidate, but it also
gave the still green squads time to coalesce.

They used the now empty trailer park as a practice field of sorts and were getting fairly
adept at urban warfare. Some of the trailers would never keep out the rain again, at
least not without a major overhaul, but the squads were in pretty good shape. Each

173
squad was now equipped with 3 snipers rifles; some had 2 7.62×51’s and 1 .50 cal and
others had 2 .50’s and 1 7.62×51. Everyone who was not a sniper was a grenadier, as
there was a surplus of the M203’s and 40mm grenades.

The new ammo, the M993 and M995 was also a Godsend. The M993 was totally suita-
ble for shooting in the M-24 SWS and M-40’s. If there was one advantage to the M16’s,
it was the amount of ammo they could carry. They had a lot of magazines and every
couple days swapped them out. That was quite a chore when you carried 18 loaded
magazines plus the one in your rifle. They had their choice of gear, MOLLE or ALICE,
but had elected to go with good old ALICE, she was a sweetheart. Both were compati-
ble with the interceptor vest, so it really didn’t make any difference. Add a dozen 40mm
grenades to the mix plus 2 canteens of water and your belt was full and heavy. And, it
left no room for a pistol so they hit every gun store in the area and rounded up the Mi-
ami Vice holster rigs like Sonny Crockett wore. (Jackass rigs)

The three old geezers had spent the lull trying to decide where they wanted to strike
next and couldn’t agree. They had initially thought about northern California, but appar-
ently northern California had a couple of patriots left and all the camps had been at-
tacked and the internees freed. They heard on the radio that troops were starting to ar-
rive back in the US, but the radio also had some disturbing news. It seems that the
troops were being confined to their bases/posts and news of what had happened to the
country was being withheld from them. They assumed that with Clark still in charge, he
was afraid of what would happen if the troops found out about the coup.

01Apr05…Command bunker, Mt. Weather…

“General Clark, the troops are getting restless. How much longer do you think you can
keep them bottled up on those bases and posts?” the Colonel asked.

“Did you send them the porn flicks and the whores?” Clark asked.

“We followed orders, sir, but you must have a pretty low opinion of the American fighting
men and women,” the Colonel said, “The attendance fell off real quick at the movies and
if those broads weren’t on the payroll and eating in the mess halls, they’d starve to
death.”

“The booze?” Clark asked.

“You made a few alcoholics pretty happy, but no sir, few takers,” the Colonel answered.
“The troops just want to go home to their families. Can you blame them, General?”

“I expect you people to keep a lid on this situation,” Clark boomed. “We can’t have them
finding out there’s been a coup. Not yet, anyway.”

174
“You should have just left them in Iraq, Kosovo and Korea General, you’ve opened up a
big can of worms,” the Colonel suggested.

“You and my son make quite a pair Colonel,” Clark said, “Maybe you’d like to join him
mopping floors.”

“It would beat the hell out of trying to stuff a wet noodle up a wildcat’s butt General,” the
Colonel snapped.

“You’re forgetting yourself Colonel. When I was in the Army, these 4 Stars meant I out-
ranked you,” Clark fumed.

“You aren’t in the Army anymore are you Wes?” the Colonel stood his ground. “You’re a
has been retired General who only got one state in the primaries for the 2004 election.
And, Kerry wouldn’t even consider you for the ticket. I wish you had been on the ticket;
then the country would know what a loser both of you were.”

Clark had about enough of the shouting match with the Colonel. He pressed the buzzer
on his desk to summon a guard.

“Yes Sir?” the guard asked.

“Take that traitorous SOB out and shoot him,” Clark ordered.

“Yes Sir,” the guard said pulling his pistol, “Let’s go Colonel.”

The Colonel snapped to attention, turned on his heel and left the room. After they were
out of the outer office, the guard, holstering his pistol, said, “Guess you were right Colo-
nel, the SOB is crazy. Your helicopter is warmed up on the pad, Sir, next stop is Ft.
Benning Georgia.”

The Colonel was one of several officers who had been charmed by Wesley Clark but
had seen through the coup too late to stop the bombings of the cities. They hadn’t even
learned Clark was behind the bombings until Bush made his first speech. They had
been, for several weeks, planning on overthrowing Clark and restoring power to Presi-
dent Bush. They had to move slowly and carefully because Clark had quite a few back-
ers. Although Clark had bemoaned the deaths of Kennedy, Schumer and Clinton, the
Colonel suspected that Clark was directly responsible for their deaths. Not that it was
any great loss, but the General seemed to have lost a lot of competition when they’d
died.

“What we ought to do is raid a military post,” Ron said.

“Yeah right,” Gary said, “We’ll put our 48 best up against a few thousand of the Army’s

175
best.”

“Aren’t there any Army posts that aren’t heavily staffed?” Clarence asked.

“What about Fort Irwin up by Barstow?” Ron asked.

“Hell, how should I know?” Gary said, “I was in the Air Force from ‘61 to ‘65.”

“I thought you’d been to Ft. Irwin,” Ron said.

“Never on the post, just at the ‘50’s café to meet Derek, Gary replied. “But, Derek
should know.”

“Then get his young butt over here and we’ll ask him,” Ron said.

“Yes, Mother,” Gary replied.

Later…

“So how about you tell us about Ft. Irwin?” Ron asked.

“There’re lots of sand, land and soldiers,” Derek replied.

“Oh,” Ron said, “It wouldn’t be a good place to raid, huh?”

“It would be a great place to raid, Ron,” Derek disagreed, “I just don’t know how practi-
cal it would be. The United States Army Garrison consists of Headquarters and Head-
quarters Company, Military Police Company, Directorate of Information Management,
Directorate of Public Works, the Civilian Personnel Advisory Center, Directorate of
Community Activities, and the Provost Marshall’s Office. HQ & HQ Company consist of
255 soldiers from those directorates plus those from the G-1, G-2, G-3, DOC, IG, SJA,
PAO, Chapel and the Command Group. On top of that, 4,000-5,000 soldiers from other
installations rotate through the NTC each month.”

“I guess we should forget it, then,” Ron said, “It was a bad idea.”

“Not necessarily, Ron,” Derek hedged, “They also train Military Police there. Now, if we
were present ourselves as MP’s there on an infiltration training mission, we might be
able to pull it off.”

“How could that work?” Clarence asked.

“Didn’t you ever read any of Richard Marcinko’s novels?” Derek asked, “You know the
Rogue Warrior series?”

“I read a couple,” Gary said, “It was fantasy BS.”

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“It wasn’t either,” Derek said. “Well maybe a little, but if he could do it, we can do it.”

“Hell boy, you can’t even swim,” Gary said.

“Dad, you don’t have to swim to be sneaky,” Derek smiled, “Damon can’t swim either.”

“Mission approved,” Ron said.

“Who died and put you in charge?” Gary asked.

“Do you disagree, Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“No, but that’s not the point,” Gary said.

“I agree with the mission, too, Ron, but Gary’s got a point,” Clarence said.

“Go ahead Derek and I’ll work it out with these other old geezers,” Ron laughed.

Derek left, but his head was swimming, even if he couldn’t. He’d just brought up
Marcinko to make a point. On the other hand, he had been through the National Train-
ing Center twice and Mary had been there once, that was where they’d met. She’d seen
parts of the base he hadn’t and vice versa. He’d better get Damon in on this, too. Hmm,
maybe not because Mary did not like Damon; Damon and his crazy behavior made her
nervous. He decided to get as much information from Mary as he could and then get
with Damon, Roy, Becky and Doc separately. Maybe the five of them could figure out a
plan that would work.

Mary knew a lot about the base that he didn’t. He told her what they were planning to do
and she said she ought to go along with them. He nixed that idea quickly, if the plan
went south on them, it just wouldn’t do to leave Elizabeth and Joshua without a parent.
Mary insisted that she participate in the planning, however. Derek warned her that Da-
mon would be there. That was ok, she said, as long as she didn’t have to sit next to him.
Besides, she said, she’d also been an MP and there were a few things she knew about
that that they didn’t teach Derek at Ft. Stewart before he went to Kosovo.

02Apr05…

They all got together at the trailer park at 9am the next morning. Mary started the meet-
ing off by greeting Damon with, “Hi butthead, how’s it hanging?”

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 Preparations – Chapter 35 – The NTC

Damon started to come out of his chair but caught Derek out of the corner of his eye.
The look on Derek’s face spoke volumes. Damon didn’t know what she was so angry
about. True he’d moved in for a week and stayed six months, but what the hell, he’d
made his bed once in a while and it wasn’t like he’d eaten them out of home. He clearly
remembered buying a box of those sugared donuts once or twice. Sheesh, what did
they expect; he looked faithfully for work every Sunday in the Des Moines Register’s
want ads. And even let Derek read the paper before he’d taken it to his room and
looked at it behind closed doors. He didn’t even complain when she’d only made maca-
roni and cheese for dinner and he hated macaroni and cheese. And it wasn’t like he
didn’t work; he’d had 8 or was it 9 jobs in those six months. But he could never find a
fair employer; people had always expected him to work.

Anyway, he listened up while she explained all about what MP’s did. Nothing new there,
he watched them enough, and figured out how they operated before he’d pulled a job.
Anyway this ideas of Derek’s was a harebrained scheme. It was different dealing with
those part-time warriors up at the Sheriff’s Station in Lancaster. They usually just looked
at the paperwork and never called anyone to check on its authenticity. Derek was going
to infiltrate Ft. Irwin for real, or so it seemed. Derek had a list of equipment he wanted to
acquire, and Damon couldn’t figure out what Derek wanted with those M1026A1 Hum-
mers equipped with M2 Machine guns and Mk-19 grenade launchers. All they really
needed was some M35 deuce and half’s and some of the M-809 5-ton 6-bys and a few
M1114 Up-Armored Hummers. At least Derek didn’t have an Abrams tank on the list.

They spent most of the day refining their plan. Derek concluded they needed written or-
ders authorizing the infiltration in case they got caught. They also concluded that they
needed someone on the outside to cover their backs. It had to be someone that no one
would ever suspect. They discussed it quite a while, but couldn’t agree on whom to use.
Damon finally got over his pouting and solved the problem.

“We’ll use Dad,” Damon said.

“Dad can barely walk 200 yards,” Derek objected.

“Baloney,” Damon said, “He walks Missy around the tract every day and that’s 4 blocks.
But if you think he can’t handle it we’ll send Ron too.”

“Wherever those two go, Clarence is sure to follow,” Derek replied, “So I guess the
Three Amigos ride again.”

“Did they ride before?” Damon asked.

“You know what I mean,” Derek smiled.

When they had the details worked out, Derek went to talk with his Dad.

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“Did you figure something out?” Ron asked.

“Where’s Dad?” Derek asked.

“I’ll get him,” Ron said. He picked up the mike to the CB radio and yelled into it, “Gar-
Bear, get your lazy butt back to the OP.”

“Where’s Clarence?” Derek asked between chortles.

“I’ll get him, too,” Ron said. He picked up the CB mike again. “Clarence. Oh, Clarence.
Yoo-hoo, Clarence. Please come to the OP, when you have a moment.”

“You guys ought to take that act on the road,” Derek said.

“We’ve been all through that,” Ron smirked.

When the three geezers had assembled, Derek explained what he had in mind. The
three men could plunk their tired old butt’s down in a booth at Peggy’s and keep an eye
out for them.

“Suits me,” Gary said, “They have real fountain cokes.”

“They have any chitterlings?” Clarence asked.

“You’ll have to settle for French fries, Clarence,” Gary said.

“Darn,” Clarence replied, “I was looking forward to chitterlings.”

“You’d better take your insulin with you Gar-Bear,” Ron advised.

“The problem I have with drinking cokes is it lowers my blood sugar,” Gary said, “I’ll
have to load up on fries, too.”

“How can that be?” Clarence said, “Coke is pure sugar.”

This was neither the time nor the place to explain reactive hypoglycemia to the men, so
Gary said, “Take my word for it.”

“When are we going on this great adventure?” Ron asked.

“We’ll leave at 3pm tomorrow,” Derek advised.

“Tomorrow is Sunday,” Ron said.

“Right,” Derek said, “Can you think of a better time to infiltrate than on a Sunday even-

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ing?”

03Apr05…

About 9am, Gary came dragging 3 of the MP5’s and a bag of loaded mags to the OP.
They couldn’t appear to be armed, he said, so maybe these popguns would come in
handy.

“Does this café stay open all night?” Clarence asked.

“They close…at…10pm,” Gary said, “Crap.”

“What’s plan B?” Ron asked.

“Plan A was unlikely Ron,” Clarence said, “Why would that café be open with all that’s
going on?”

“Well, there’s a 24-hour gas station right there at the exit,” Gary said.

“They’re sure to be open,” Ron said sarcastically, “With all traffic to Vegas.”

“I don’t know about you guys,” Ron said, “But I’m taking my Springfield; to hell with
these popguns. We’re going to end up in a ditch somewhere, just trying to keep warm.”

“Only if they put in ditches since the last time I was there,” Gary dryly observed.

The 51 people squeezed into 2 2½-ton trucks around 2:45pm and departed for Barstow.
Derek had travel orders in his left shirt pocket, the infiltration orders in his right shirt
pocket and requisition forms in his jacket pocket. Damon was driving the second truck
and had copies of the same sets of orders. Damon had gotten confused about all the
different sets of orders and just clipped them all on a clipboard, like he used to do when
he drove truck. It took them about 2½ hours to get to Victorville and up I-15 to Barstow.
North of Barstow, at the Ft. Irwin exit, everything was closed up tight. It didn’t look like
there were any lights on at Ft. Irwin either. They broke into the gas station to give Ron,
Gary and Clarence someplace to stay and the others set out to infiltrate the Fort. Less
than two hours later, a convoy pulled up in front of the gas station. There were 4 Hum-
mers and 3 5-ton trucks in addition to the 2 2½ -ton trucks. The 5-ton trucks were load-
ed to the gills with munitions and the deuce and a half’s half loaded with other supplies
and the squads.

There wasn’t any obvious explanation, but it seemed that Ft. Irwin was deserted. They’d
been lucky to find anything. They made it back to the trailer park without encountering a
single roadblock, too. It was as if the Army and CNG had just disappeared. They un-
loaded their haul and decided to lay low for a day or two, something big was brewing,

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and everyone could sense it.

04Apr05…

“I don’t like it, not one by God bit,” Ron said.

“In Harm’s Way, 1965, Otto Preminger, Admiral Broderick speaking to Commander
Owynn,” Gary said.

“I thought it was 1961,” Ron replied.

Clarence was in the spirit of the moment and started to sing, “Where have all the sol-
diers gone, long time passing…”

“That’s flowers, butthead,” Ron said, “And who ever told you that you could sing?”

“Hell Ron, all us black people can sing,” Clarence said.

“That was too easy,” Gary said, “There should have been hundreds or thousands of
troops at Ft. Irwin. I think we’re in deep kimchi.”

“Did we get the soldiers and Marines out of Ft. Irwin and 29 Palms?” Clark asked.

“Yes General they’re all moving east, just like you ordered,” the officer replied.

“What about that Colonel?” Clark asked, “The guard never reported back that he was
dead.”

“The guard and Colonel disappeared General,” the officer replied, “We think they got on
a helicopter for Ft. Benning.”

“Can’t anyone do anything right around here?” Clark bellowed. “I commanded thou-
sands of troops in NATO and I never, never had problems like this.”

“Yes you did, butthead,” the officer thought, “You just couldn’t or wouldn’t see it.”

“We’re doing the best we can Sir,” the officer replied.

“Well, your best isn’t good enough, Mister,” Clark bellowed again. “Dismissed.”

Wesley Clark’s half-baked plan was starting to unravel. The Colonel was right, he
should have left those troops in Kosovo, Iraq and Korea, he admitted to himself. It was
all Kerry’s fault, he rationalized, “If he’d just picked me instead of John Edwards, I
wouldn’t have had to do it this way. I could have just put a contract out on Kerry and

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stepped into the Presidency all nice and legal, just like Lyndon did.”

“Something big is going on guys,” Derek said, “Get some scouts out tonight and get me
some fresh Intel.”

“Are we looking for anything in particular?” Roy asked.

“Trying to locate the concentrations of the FEMA people, the CNG and the federal
troops,” Derek replied.

The entire group was assembled in the Community Building at the trailer park. As far as
equipment went, the 4 squads had as much as, or more than, they could use. Recruiting
had completely dried up and it was just the 48 of them. Each squad would take either a
Mk-19 equipped Hummer or a Ma Deuce equipped Hummer. The remainder of each
squad would pile into the M1097A2 Humvee transports they’d ‘liberated’ from around
the area.

That was, when they did another operation. The other militias all wore civilian clothing
and to distinguish the Palmdale militia from the federal and CNG people, it had been
decided to paint a peace symbol on the vehicles. It wasn’t large, and was crudely drawn
to look like a bit of graffiti that someone hadn’t taken the time to clean off. All of their ve-
hicles had the deep water fording kits installed. And, they had plenty of fuel for the vehi-
cles, thanks to Damon. He had liberated several of the Flexcell fuel bladders.

They went out, in pairs, after dark, wearing civilian clothes and driving cars and pickups.
Clark hadn’t rescinded martial law, but recently it didn’t seem to be enforced. The teams
looked all night, but couldn’t find a single FEMA employee, CNG unit or any federal
troops. It was almost as if they had dropped off the face of the earth. Derek was right,
they concluded, something big was in the works, but what? The LEO’s had resumed
their normal duties, just like nothing had happened. The whole thing stunk to high heav-
en.

05Apr05…

“Anyway, they’re all gone,” Derek was reporting to the three old geezers. “They just
dropped off the face of the earth.”

“Bullcrap,” Ron said, “Get some long range radios, maybe some of the HF Ham units,
and go looking for them. Report back when you find them. Unless Hummers can swim,
they had to go east, so go east. And, watch your backsides, they’ll be concentrated into
a large group or groups now. We’ll get together with Manny, Moe and Jack and give
them a heads up.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 36 – Eastbound and Down

After Derek left, Gary lit into Ron.

“There you go again, acting like you were in charge,” Gary said.

“Well, it’s a tough job,” Ron said, “But somebody’s got to do it.”

“I heard that one before Ronald,” Gary said, “Get some new material.”

“Calm down you two,” Clarence said, “Where HAVE all the soldiers gone?”

“I’m just guessing,” Gary said, “But they probably headed east to the Midwest. They’re
either going to Ft. Leonard Wood or to one of the posts in Texas, in my opinion.”

“Never heard of the place,” Ron said.

“It’s about 100 square miles in the Ozarks, Ron,” Gary said. “It’s a training post. It’s
named after some Doctor who won the CMH.”

“My, aren’t we a bundle of information,” Ron observed.

“Up yours,” Gary snapped.

“Let’s say you’re right,” Ron continued, “What would they go there for?”

“It’s a Chemical weapons center, or, at least it used to be,” Gary explained.

“OP to TP-1,” Ron said over the CB.

“TP-1”

“Tell Junior to MOPP up and head for the big Show Me,” Ron said.

“10-4.”

“You’ve been spending too much time around Derek,” Gary observed. “That was as
cryptic as the Bible code.”

“I think we ought to go along,” Ron said.

“I can’t make it Ron,” Gary said, straight faced, “My nurse doesn’t like to travel.”

“Might be able to find you a redhead named Daisy Mae in Missouri,” Ron suggested.

“It’s Stacy, but hell, in that case,” Gary smiled, “What are we waiting for?”

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“Gary, the brains are above the nose, not below the chin,” Clarence instructed.

“I’m a leg man, Clarence,” Gary said.

“Yeah right,” the other two men echoed.

06Apr05…

Ft. Leonard Wood is located in Pulaski County in south central Missouri along I-44. It
looked to be a pretty straight shot, I-15 back to Barstow and I-40 to Oklahoma City
where they would pick up I-44, assuming that Gary’s 1993 road atlas was still correct
and they hadn’t renamed the roads or moved them. The trip was just under 1,300 miles
to Oklahoma City, plus another 300, more or less to Springfield and then another 90
miles or so to the Fort. Hell, call it 1,700 miles for simplicity’s sake. At an average of
50mph, that was non-stop at 55mph and allowed for breaks to refuel and make pit
stops, it was going to take them a day and a half to get there. Assuming, of course that
they didn’t run into trouble along the way. Maybe Ft. Leonard Wood was the wrong des-
tination entirely, but they had to start somewhere.

The other militias in the Antelope Valley were going to assemble their groups, locate
additional transportation and follow as soon as they could. Manny knew leaders of sev-
eral militia groups along the route to the Midwest and he would be contacting them and
getting them to join in the foray. He told Derek that he’d have several thousand people
with him by the time he arrived at Ft. Leonard Wood. Derek and his group could do all
the recon work and they wouldn’t have to waste any time once he caught up. And as far
as possible destinations went, one of his people had overheard a couple of CNG troops
talking about Ft. Leonard Wood, so maybe they were right on the money.

They made Barstow with no trouble in about 3 hours. Needles next and it took about 4
hours for that leg. They stopped in Needles to refuel and make pit stops. They were not
making good time; the trip from Barstow to Needles should have only taken 3 hours be-
cause it was only 144 miles. Their average speed was more like 36mph. The next stop
was Williams and they would top off the tanks, do pit stops and change drivers. They
covered those 178 miles in the same 4 hours; things were beginning to look up a little.
They were just a half hour, give or take, out of Flagstaff. Our old friend Murphy was
waiting for them when they hit the outskirts of Flagstaff. Apparently, the Army and/or
guard units hadn’t been too nice to the folks in Flagstaff and the residents mistook them
for more of the same dressed as they were in uniforms and driving military vehicles.

“Can we bypass Flagstaff?” Derek asked. “We don’t want any trouble with these peo-
ple.”

“We’d have to back track to 89 and go south to Prescott, according to the map,” Gary

184
said. “Then we’d have to take 17 north to 260 and cut across to 87. 87 would take us
into Winslow. Thing is, I don’t know that 260 at all; it’s probably blacktop, if I’m reading
the map right.”

“How much time is that going to cost us?” Derek asked.

“Not sure, maybe 2 or 3 hours, maybe longer,” Gary said.

“We’re not on a schedule here,” Ron said, “Let’s take the detour. However, before we
leave, put these flags on those radio antennas.”

“Where in the hell did you find a Don’t Tread On Me Flag?” Gary asked.

“It’s called a Gadsden Flag and I got them on the Internet a long time ago,” Ron said.
“Got a package deal, 6 for $36. Anyway, no way that anyone is going to mistake us for
regular Army if we’re flying that flag.”

They took a few minutes and mounted the flags. Then, they backtracked and took the
detour. The time lost was 4 hours, but they had avoided trouble. Once they got back on
I-40, they made a quick pit stop and proceeded on to Gallup. Once in Gallup, they
topped off the tanks again, ate a meal and changed drivers again. Albuquerque was
less than 140 miles and they hoped to make up a little time by driving right through and
not stopping until they got to Tucumcari. It started to look like trouble in Albuquerque,
too, but the Gadsden Flags must have told the residents something because they
backed off and let them pass. They hadn’t planned on stopping in Tucumcari, but eve-
ryone was totally exhausted. They figured they were about halfway to Ft. Leonard Wood
and that maybe they’d better lay over and rest up.

08Apr05…

A schedule is a goal, not a taskmaster. They were way behind schedule but were rested
up pretty good. The gal running the motel they pulled into gave them rooms for no
charge when she saw the Gadsden Flags on their antennas. She had pinto beans, great
northern beans or navy bean soup plus homemade bread in the restaurant. It was a
shame that she only had 12 rooms in the motel instead of 48, wasn’t it? The next stop
was Amarillo.

They should be able to find out which way the troops headed in Amarillo. If they contin-
ued east, they were probably headed for Leonard Wood; southeast or south meant any
one of several posts in Texas. When they arrived in Amarillo, they topped off, emptied
out and ask around. The troops had gone east, they learned. They were going to go on
to Oklahoma City and stay over for a night there; it wouldn’t be any good for them to be
tired being they were getting close to their destination.

09Apr05…

185
“I heard that we were going to start running into federal forces around Joplin,” Roy said.

“Maybe we should cut off I-44 at the 301 exit and take Highway 60,” Derek suggested.

“You sound like you know the country around here,” Roy said.

“I do,” Derek explained. “I went to college in a small town north of Springfield named
Bolivar. I worked in Branson for a while, too. My oldest son, Derek, lives in Bolivar with
his grandparents.”

“How old is he?” Roy asked.

“Eleven,” Derek replied. “I sort of figured on picking him up on the way back to California
after we take out Ft. Leonard Wood.”

“Assuming we take them out rather than the other way around, huh?” Roy said.

“That’s why I said after, Roy,” Derek responded coolly. “If they take us out, it won’t make
much difference.”

They drove to the second US 60 exit, at the 301-mile marker, and took 60 over to Ne-
osho. At Neosho, Derek lead them on a backwoods maze of roads, avoiding Springfield
altogether. They ended up in Mansfield where they crossed US 60. Derek planned to
take state route 5 to state route 38 and then cut east to state route 17. That would put
them in Indian country. They would hole up in a small town called Roby for the night;
Derek had kinfolk in the area. He had a bunch more to the northwest, too, in a small
town named Cole Camp. Yes sir, Derek was right at home here in the heart of water
moccasin and tick country. Damon was too, sort of. Maybe that’s why he favored a
short-barreled shotgun. Damon didn’t like snakes. Derek was more concerned with the
copperheads, the things didn’t rattle to warn you. Well, that’s not exactly true; they
shook their tail, but had no rattles.

10Apr05…

“Listen up people,” Derek said, “We’re leaving our vehicles here at my aunt’s farm and
going the rest of the way on foot. Our mission is recon, so avoid contact with the Army
at all cost. I’m leaving the three old geezers behind. They can keep an eye on the vehi-
cles and serve as a coordination center for the Intel. This is a big fort; it covers almost
100 square miles. Roy, you take your team around the west side and to the north.
That’s where the main gate is, and use channel one. Becky you take your folks with Roy
and cover the west side on channel two. Doc, you cover the south side on channel three
and I’ll cover the east side on channel four. Yes Damon, what do you want?”

“Can I switch to Doc’s squad?” Damon asked.

“You’re with me,” Derek said, “You can walk off some of your pot gut.”

186
“Sheesh.”

“Take enough rations for 7 days,” Derek continued. “And watch out for the copperheads,
they don’t warn before they strike. Any questions?”

Gary raised his hand.

“Dad, question?” Derek asked.

“Why can’t we go with you?” Gary asked.

“You’re welcome to come along, it’s only about 15 miles to our AO,” Derek said.

“Miles?” Gary said, “Never mind.”

After everyone had left, Gary leaned over to Ron.

“Hey partner, where’s Daisy Mae?” he asked.

“In the newspaper,” Ron winked at Clarence.

“No, not the blonde, the redhead,” Gary protested.

“You wouldn’t have come if I said she was a blonde would you?” Ron asked.

“Hell no,” Gary said.

“So, I lied and said she was a redhead. So shoot me,” Ron laughed.

Gary grabbed for his M1A rifle.

“Whoa, partner, I was kidding about the shoot me part,” Ron said.

“I was too,” Gary said, “But it ain’t me with smelly drawers. Phew, you stink.”

“Uh, Gary what’s a copperhead look like?” Clarence asked looking behind Gary with his
eyebrows raised.

Anyone ever seen a bottle rocket take off? Old Gar-Bear jumped several feet.

“Gotcha,” Clarence laughed.

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 Preparations – Chapter 37 – Ft. Leonard Wood

“You probably haven’t moved that fast since Kathy pulled her bra off,” Ron managed
between brays.

“Clarence that was mean,” Gary said.

“What goes around comes around Gary,” Clarence laughed.

The horseplay over, the three old geezers set up a table and got the radios setup and
turned on. They weren’t short on radios and decided that it would be easier to have one
radio on each ‘channel’. Considering the seriousness of the situation the squads were
going to be in, up close to those troops and FEMA folks, they decided to do the 16-on 8-
off routine they’d talked about back at the OP at one time. Ron could be off first be-
cause he needed a shower anyway. The squads had 2-meter handhelds for squad
communications and a 10-meter mobile radio and battery pack for longer-range com-
munications. They would be using the codes Derek had worked up and given to his Dad
previously on the 10-meter radios and a form of shorthand each squad had worked out
on the 2-meters, earplug and throat mike equipped squad radios.

There wasn’t any radio traffic for a while. Then, Doc radioed the code for ‘on site and
commencing patrol’. Later, Becky and Derek radioed in within minutes of each other
with the same radio code. The map the old geezers were using came off the Internet.
Gary had brought up one of the map websites and zoomed in on the Fort, printing each
section. Then, they had pasted the sections together to form a 2’x3’ map of the post. It
didn’t really show any detail, but each squad had a copy of the map and Gary had
drawn a grid on the original before they made the copies for the squads. It wasn’t per-
fect, but you made do with the resources you had. Finally, after dark, Roy radioed in
that he was ‘on site and commencing patrol’.

Maybe patrol was a misnomer. There were 12 people in each squad. They weren’t mov-
ing in a group, but were spread out along the perimeter of their area of operations ob-
serving. When Roy had called in, that meant that the last individual was in place, about
a 25-mile hike from their position. There were 48 people spread out along the nearly 40-
mile perimeter of the post. Roy had the most dangerous assignment, too, being up by
the main gate.

“Ok Clarence, get some sleep and I’ll spend some time getting even with Gar-Bear,”
Ron said.

“Darn it Ron, that was a dirty trick you pulled on me,” Gary laughed, “Sometimes we get
carried away a bit with our humor.”

“You no more expected a red head named Daisy Mae to be here than what, hell I can’t
think what,” Ron said.

188
“True, but you didn’t have to make fun of me just to tell me the truth, did you?” Gary
said. “I will have to say though that your wife is pretty good in bed, or so several people
have told me.”

“Oh really?” Ron said, “I wouldn’t know.”

The two pals went on for the entire 8 hours like this, trying to get each other’s goat with
lies and anything they could say to get a rise out of each other. But, they had been
friends too long and they were probably just repeating themselves. Clarence listened to
the two of them before he dropped off. One of these days, one of them was going to say
the wrong thing at the wrong time and there would be fireworks for sure. That had hap-
pened already, Clarence just didn’t know about it. It had happened when Ron tried to
dissuade Gary from divorcing Sharon over what Kathy kept stuffed in her bra. Gary had
told Ron off, clearly and succinctly, and they hadn’t talked to each other for over a year.
Nope, Clarence was wrong this time.

11Apr05…0900…Mt. Weather…

“So, are they all assembled at Ft. Leonard Wood and Camp LeJeune?” General Wesley
Clark asked.

“Yes sir,” the officer said. “May I ask the General what he has in mind concentrating our
forces like this?”

“Why, is there something wrong with my plan?” Clark snapped.

“Only that we don’t know what your plan is General. I’m sure it’s a perfectly good plan,
but we need just a hint of what it is,” the officer replied.

“I’ll let you know when you need to know Major,” Clark responded, “We have to maintain
operational security, you know.”

“Yes sir,” the Major replied, “Will there be anything else sir?”

“So you think it is a good plan, huh?” Clark said.

“I’m sure it’s a perfectly good plan General,” the Major repeated.

“Glad to hear that Major, Dismissed,” Clark smiled.

“I sure wished the Colonel hadn’t po’d the General,” the Major thought, “Now I’m stuck
doing the handholding with this crazy SOB. His operational security is so tight that only
he knows what the plan is. It reminds me of the Normandy invasion when they didn’t
dare wake up Hitler to get the tanks released to repel the invasion. A lot of those troops

189
with their misplaced loyalties are going to end up dying.”

There wasn’t much to see during the nighttime. They had all of night vision equipment
they needed, but when people didn’t move, there was nothing to report. Consequently,
the night was occasionally punctuated with a call like unit 4, 10-9. Meanwhile the people
on patrol were filling in details on their copy of the map. This was going to be a long
week unless something happened. The beauty of 10-meters is that with a proper anten-
na and power it reaches a long ways. The Pep Boys were able to monitor most of the
calls from the three old geezers and occasionally picked up a call from one of the
squads. This situation was changing rapidly because they were getting closer. They had
already cleared the Continental Divide in New Mexico and were now about 4,000
strong.

“Unit 2-11 925,” came over the radio. Derek replied to Becky, asking 910 and received a
10-4 followed shortly by a 2-11 code 100 and minutes later by Code 4 plus DOA.

“What the hell does that all mean?” Ron asked.

“925 is suspicious person, 910 is can you handle, 10-4 is…” Gary started to explain.

“I know what 10-4 is butthead,” Ron said.

“2-11 is our guy, don’t know which one, code 100 is in position to intercept and Code 4
is no further assistance necessary and DOA means the SOB is dead,” Gary concluded.

“Oh,” Ron said, “Do cops really talk like that?”

“How should I know?” Gary said, “They did on that TV show, COPS.”

“All units, Pep Boys halfway plus 4,000,” Gary updated the squad leaders.

“You know partner, no more radio traffic than there is, I figure we can handle it with one
person,” Ron said, “Why don’t you get some sleep?”

“I wish that you’d told me that 10 minutes ago,” Gary said, “I just took 2 Sudafed.”

“Your nose plugged up?” Ron asked.

“No, I took it to stay awake,” Gary said. “Now I’d have to double up on the Xanax and
you wouldn’t be able to get me up in the morning. So, I guess I’ll just stay up.”

“You’re a real pill head, do you know that?” Ron said.

“What do you mean, you take more pills than I do,” Gary replied defensively.

190
“Yeah, but you take Benadryl and Xanax and sometimes Sudafed,” Ron said.

“Benadryl replaces the prescriptions I had for 2 allergy pills, one cost $150 a month and
the other $250 a month; Xanax lets me sleep and when I have to stay up I take generic
Sudafed, big deal,” Gary said “Your just jealous because 100 Benadryl is 5 bucks, 100
Xanax is 10 bucks and the Sudafed is 4 bucks for 200. I don’t have to take all of those
expensive prescriptions for a lot of things.”

“I don’t spend anything on prescriptions,” Ron said.

“Maybe, but you’re running out of physicians samples, same as me,” Gary said. “What
are you going to do when you run out? I can up my insulin and get by with just laying off
the salt, old buddy old pal.”

“Well, if you’re not going to bed, I am,” Ron said, “Ciao.”

Gary was sure glad when Clarence relieved him, the Sudafed had worn off and he was
gulping coffee to stay awake. There hadn’t been any more radio traffic except for the
occasional 10-8.

“Morning Clarence,” Gary said.

“Good morning Gary, where’s Ron?” Clarence asked.

“Went to bed,” Gary replied, “Let him sleep 6 more hours and then roll his butt out of
bed.”

“Any action?” Clarence asked.

“Pep Boys are halfway here with 4,000 people and one of Becky’s people killed some
guy,” Gary said, “Other than that it has been pretty quiet. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight Gary, you sleep well, you hear,” Clarence said.

Gary took his Xanax and crawled into his sleeping bag. His last thought before he drift-
ed off was, “How in the hell are 5 or 10 thousand people going to take on a few hundred
thousand trained American soldiers and Guardsmen?”

It was a fair question. Carlos Hathcock had killed 300 Vietnamese, but not all in one sit-
ting. And they were outnumbered about 50 or 100 to 1. This was going to require some
real innovation if they were to get out of this one with their hides intact. They didn’t have
enough Claymores to seed a 40-mile perimeter or even a 4-mile perimeter. They had
enough ammo, but only if some of those soldiers stood still and let them shoot them one
by one. And, not all of the Patriots were snipers, not by a long shot. Well, it had seemed
like a good idea at the time, hadn’t it? And, what was good old Wesley Clark planning?

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He had the Air Force with their bombers and fighters and all of those attack helicopters.

What Wes didn’t have was the troops at Ft. Bragg/Pope AFB or Ft. Benning Georgia or
Ft. Stewart Georgia or Ft. Hood Texas. And, by golly, they had a couple of helicopters
themselves. Not to mention a whole lot of arty and Abrams and those Patriot missile
batteries over at Ft. Bliss. Besides, Wes hadn’t confided his plans to anyone. Did that
mean he didn’t have a plan and was playing it by ear? Maybe the Major was right and
Wes was just another crackpot like Adolph Hitler. There was a showdown brewing, for
sure. The Colonel and some of his friends had put their troops on the move after filling
them in on what was really going on at Mt. Weather. They had more volunteers than
they could use to liberate Mt. Weather. Not that everyone liked Bush; some did and
some didn’t, but it was the principle of the thing.

There were two places with large infantry buildups, Camp LeJeune and Ft. Leonard
Wood. Then, there were Air Force units all over the place. Wes thought they were all
supporting him, and maybe some of them were. That bunch with the C-130’s and the
GBU-43/B (MOAB) weren’t on his side.

CNN had reported on the March 11, 2003 test of MOAB. They pointed out two very in-
teresting things: 1) “The goal is to have the pressure be so great that Saddam Hussein
cooperates,” Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld told reporters. “Short of that – an un-
willingness to cooperate – the goal is to have the capabilities of the coalition so clear
and so obvious that there is an enormous disincentive for the Iraqi military to fight
against the coalition;” and, 2) “But military officials tell CNN that the MOAB is mainly
conceived as a weapon employed for ‘psychological operations.’ Military officials say
they hope the MOAB will create such a huge blast that it will rattle Iraq troops and pres-
sure them into surrendering or not even fighting. Officials suggest perhaps the Iraqis
might even mistake a MOAB blast for a nuclear detonation.”

What CNN was suggesting was that the bomb could be used to scare the crap out of
people and not just to kill them. Global Security didn’t report any of the bombs in the Air
Force inventory, but Global Security was often late reporting the military information.
They still listed the Crusader as a viable project, for crying out loud. The Air Force had
built a few but had never seen fit to use them. These particular bombs were capable of
being detonated at various altitudes ranging from a near ground burst to an airburst at
some altitude. The Air Force Colonel in charge of the weapons would only agree to their
use for psyops. He didn’t mind scaring the crap out of the American troops, but he
wasn’t going to be a party to killing any of them.

Close enough. There were other weapons in the inventory and not all of the officers
were so reticent to use them. Wesley Clark was turning this whole thing into a civil war
and it wasn’t the north against the south. It was more like the people who believed in the
Constitution and all that it stood for against a petty tyrant and the misguided fools who
believed in him and bought his lies. The number of misguided fools was on a steady de-
cline, too. Unfortunately the majority of them could be found in Missouri and North Caro-
lina. Not many of the people at Camp LeJeune were Marines, either. The Marines had

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all moved to Ft. Bragg/Pope Air Force Base.

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 Preparations – Chapter 38 – The Fight

When it came to regular Army/Navy/Marines, the Patriots had the edge. The Air Force
was sort of undecided at 50-50, but they would probably come around. They were sort
of like their planes, they didn’t move too fast on the ground, but once they got going…

Neither were all of the National Guard people in Missouri and North Carolina staying
convinced. It seemed that the further this thing went, they less sure they were that what
they were doing was the right thing. Clark had placed some loyal officers in key posi-
tions and the best that could be said of the troops was that they were confused. It didn’t
seem quite right, but their officers kept telling them that this was the right thing to do.
And, they kept up the lie about the Muslims having bombed the 6 cities, and having tak-
en out the natural gas pipeline and electrical substations. (You do remember how this
all started don’t you?)

Clark hadn’t made the mistake of putting Bush back on the radio, either. That bit about
Barbara was bad enough, but now his aide was suggesting that the President had done
more than just use his mother’s name. At the end of his first speech he had said Good
Night, not God Bless America and at the end of the second speech, he had said Be of
Good Cheer instead of God Bless America. Then, there was this whole ‘your govern-
ment’ thing. Bush had only said I one time in his first and second speeches as if to flag
something he was telling or about to tell. It was ‘I had a revelation’ in the first speech
and ‘Barbara and I’ in the second speech. He had half a mind just to shoot old George,
but, if this whole thing went south on him because of the inept people supporting him,
he’d better have an ace up his sleeve.

He guessed he could understand the ineptitude, not everyone could graduate first of
their class at the Point. Macarthur had been leading man in his class at the Point, but
look what had happened to him. Maybe it was just Macarthur’s bad luck to be the seek-
ing the office at the same time as Eisenhower. Eisenhower had been first in his class of
275 and had been President. George S. Patton was well thought of but he’d only been
46th in his class of 103. Of course that Patton was a crude SOB. A saying attributed to
General George Patton was that it took 10 years with troops alone before an officer
knew how to empty a bucket of spit. As a serving soldier with 33 years of active duty
under his pistol belt, Clark commanded combat units – rifle platoon to tank division – for
only seven years. The rest of his career had been spent as an aide, an executive, a
student and teacher and a staff weenie. Went to show what Patton knew.

Ft. Leonard Wood isn’t square, it’s sort of rectangular and looks a little like Utah stand-
ing on its head. That meant the Becky’s squad was strung out pretty good and Derek
wasn’t much better off because he’d kept Damon with him. Damon shouldn’t have shot
his mouth off; Derek made him carry the 10-meter radio and the scanner that Derek
used to monitor the other 3 squads. Isn’t brotherly love a wonderful thing?

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Just after noon on the 12th of April, the geezers picked up another call from the Pep
Boys. They were 200 miles closer and up to 5,000 people. Ron was on the radios by
this time and he passed the information on to Derek. He also offered an opinion that
they should all use the same channel; this 4-channel business was too cumbersome.
Derek contacted the other 3 squads shortly thereafter and everyone switched to chan-
nel 4.

For their parts the squad members had been able to finish up their maps. A radio con-
ference ensued and Derek decided to leave 2 sniper teams on the north perimeter to
observe and pull everyone back to his aunt’s house; it paid in the long-run to be flexible.
From what they could see, some of those soldiers at the Ft. were slacking off. It was
subtle, but they all had a military background and had, in their times, known a few
slackers. There was just something about how a soldier moved when he or she was
slacking off; very slowly, for one thing, and sort of like they were on a string and being
pulled along. The squads arrived back at the aunt’s house at varying times, with Roy’s
crew arriving last.

This business of soldiers slacking off was a universal problem in the military. Damon
called it gun decking. Gun decking really meant signing off on work that hadn’t been
completed, but the term sort of hand a ring to it, didn’t it? Whatever you called it, there
was plenty of evidence of it at the Fort. It hadn’t taken very long to sense it, either. A
demoralized Army is an ineffective Army, just ask George Patton. The odds were that a
lot of those soldiers wouldn’t fight back when they attacked, but that still left a lot of
them to deal with. And, by the time Roy’s people had gotten back, Gary was able to re-
port that the Pep Boys were closing in and still growing in numbers.

13Apr05…

Clark’s support was evaporating like water in the noonday sun. The word was getting
out about those nukes and when people heard that he was behind the whole set of
problems that had beset America on Valentine’s Day, admiration of the retired General
was rapidly replaced by disgust. It seemed like every intact community has some sort of
militia or group of individuals dedicated to getting rid of the SOB and putting Bush back
in the Oval Office where he belonged. About the only hard-core supporters that the
General had was those folks with FEMA and Homeland Security. Air Force reconnais-
sance flights were showing a large group moving towards Camp LeJeune and all sorts
of groups converging on Ft. Leonard Wood. It wasn’t time to get out of Dodge yet, but
Clark had his escape plan worked out. He had made a deal with some of the corrupt
French businessmen who had been involved in the food for oil scandal in Iraq and was
going to head to Europe if this magnificent plan of his met an untimely end. These were
people he could count on. He worked with them before, indirectly when he’d been the
Commander of NATO.

The MOAB’s in the USAF inventory were all stored at the test facility at Eglin ABF. The

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Colonel had authorized their being loaded aboard the C-130’s and had decided to air-
burst the weapons at 3,000 feet, but he wasn’t ready to release the aircraft. These days,
General officers were kept out of the loop for fear that some of them might be Clark
supporters. So far as the Air Forces part in the attack on Ft. Leonard Wood, it would be
revealed when they were ready.

As Derek and the squad leader’s combined their map data into one complete map, it
became apparent the even with the Pep Boys and their minions, and the collapsing mo-
rale of the forces at Ft. Leonard Wood, they were in way over their head. Clarence in-
advertently made a great suggestion when he tried to get more information about the
copperheads in the area.

“Derek how to you kill a copperhead?” Clarence asked.

“You cut off its head Clarence,” Derek had responded, almost automatically.

“Thanks Clarence,” Derek said after a moment or two, “You’ve just given me an answer
here.”

“You’re welcome, what was the question?” Clarence asked befuddled.

“How do you kill a snake,” Derek replied. “Look people, from what I’ve seen, it is mostly
the officers keeping the troops in line. Why don’t we redeploy and start killing off the of-
ficers? We have 12 sniper teams and if we hit and move and hit and move, we can
surely cause confusion if nothing else.”

Admittedly, there were several hundred officers on the post, but it might cause a domino
effect and force the officers to avoid putting themselves in harm’s way. The nice thing
about their sniper rifles was that they were suppressed and not only gave off little
sound; they gave off no gun flash. If they started at the top and worked their way down,
it might cause indecision, and “indecision is a virus that can run through an army and
destroy its will to win. Or even to survive.” The Pep Boys were still a couple of days out,
maybe 3, so it was worth a shot, if you’ll pardon the pun. (The quote was Admiral Nimitz
in In Harm’s Way.)

Derek, Damon and the 11 other sniper teams headed out for the north side of the Fort.
They were tired and it was a pretty good hike and Damon was obviously more than a
little unhappy.

14Apr05…

It had taken the 12 teams all night and part of the next morning to reach their objective.
They were not spread out along the entire north perimeter of the Fort, either. Rather,
they had spread out in the area just north of the perimeter and slowly infiltrated into the
main post area about 2 miles from the main gate. It was a bear, there were soldiers eve-
rywhere. All of the teams gave up during the early afternoon hours to wait for dark when

196
they could move more freely. It was the 2-month anniversary of the events that had
brought the country to its knees and if they had anything to say about it, it would all be
over before the 3-month anniversary rolled around. They took turns napping in 2-hour
shifts, waiting for dark.

7pm…

It was finally dark enough to move and avoid detection. There were still plenty of sol-
diers around this early in the evening, but they moved in slowly, circumnavigating build-
ings and obstacles. By 10pm all of the teams were in place. Derek put out the word. It
was weapons free for stars and bars. One of the teams identified what appeared to be
either the Officer’s Club or an annex set up to provide recreation for the hundreds of of-
ficers.

It was like being in an overstocked fishpond with a net. The teams shifted their positions
and got on top of buildings allowing them to remain above the lights and shoot down on
the unsuspecting officers. It didn’t take the officers very long to realize that they were
surrounded, but by that time it was too late. Each team had accounted for several offic-
ers and had withdrawn before they were discovered. But, rather than withdraw from the
post, the teams moved further into its interior, presuming, correctly, that the GI’s would
search in the direction of the nearest post perimeter.

Ft. Leonard Wood went on full combat alert and soldiers were everywhere. Rather than
expose the fact that they had remained on post, the teams took a break, waiting for the
furor to die down.

15Apr05…

“Oh darn,” Damon whispered to Derek, “I forgot to file my tax return.”

“Shh,” Derek cautioned, “Hell, you didn’t have enough income to have to file.”

“No, but I want my refund,” Damon insisted.

“Here,” Derek said pulling out a $20 bill, “That ought to cover it, now shut up, would
you.”

The troops had been up all night and appeared to be tired. The snipers were now in a
wooded/brushy area and could see the people without being seen. They were going to
incrementally withdraw to Roby and wait on the street corner to waive to the locals
(yeah, right). Occasionally an officer would be foolish enough to show him or herself
and the teams sent them to meet their maker. After a while, it seemed that some
Noncom figured out what they were doing, withdrawing to the south and he began to
flood the area with troops. Half the teams headed east and half west, moving off post.
The damage was done and the teams returned to Derek’s aunt’s place, slipping in after
dark.

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“That went well,” Derek opined.

“Yeah well, I had a $30 refund coming and I’ve got a blister,” Damon responded.

“I already know about your head, bro,” Derek replied, “But how are your feet holding
up?”

The 12 teams had been fairly successful. They had killed fewer than 100 officers, but
the Fort was on full alert. They had everyone looking over his or her shoulder, too, es-
pecially the officers. The Pep Boys were in the Springfield area and coming on strong
with 8,000 people.

The activity at the Fort had not gone unnoticed. Repositioned Keyhole satellites re-
vealed the chaos that the sniping attacks had caused. Unknown to the small Palmdale
militia and the Pep Boys, troops from Texas were just behind the Pep Boys and the
troops from North Carolina were west of St. Louis. The Palmdale militia had decided to
suspend operations until the Pep Boys got there. They didn’t have long to wait. Just af-
ter midnight the Pep Boys showed up 8,400 strong and began to attack the Fort.

“Jeez,” Derek said, “Didn’t you guys get the word to them that the post was on full
alert?”

“We tried,” Gary said, “But we couldn’t rai…”

There was a huge flash of light followed almost immediately by a ka-boom that literally
shook the ground.

“Nuke,” Gary yelled as he dove for the ground. The phenomenon was repeated over
and over, occurring a total of 12 times. The sound was followed almost immediately by
lesser explosions; sounds with which Derek was very familiar.

“What the hell?” Gary said getting back up.

“I don’t know what those first explosions were,” Derek said, “But those explosions are
120mm canon rounds. I think that the Cavalry has arrived.”

The 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, out of Ft. Hood Texas came in behind the Pep
Boys and unleashed their M1A2 Abrams tanks. Derek’s Iowa National Guard unit was
part of the 7th Cavalry and he knew the sound well. Between those 12 MOAB’s and the
cannon fire, the disheartened soldiers of Ft. Leonard Wood rapidly threw down their
arms and surrendered. In a way, the attacks were almost anticlimactic. The earlier snip-
er fire had so demoralized the soldiers that a revolt was breaking out when the attacks
came. Camp LeJeune had fallen earlier in the day. The troops from North Carolina

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swept into the post rounding up the men and gathering arms.

The coup was over. Or, was it? There was no sign of Wesley Clark at Mt. Weather…

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 Preparations – Chapter 39 – Back to Normal

“Well, I guess we can go home now,” Ron said, “We saved the country.”

“If we saved the country,” Clarence said, “What are all of these other folks doing?”

“I just want to get back to Palmdale and clean out my garage,” Gary said, “It’s a mess
and my supplies are all disorganized.”

“What are we going to do with all of the stuff we ‘borrowed’?” Clarence asked. “If the
coup is over, we can’t run around with these automatic weapons and stuff.”

“I don’t know what the two of you are going to do,” Gary said, “But I have a basement
now and I think maybe I’ll just put the ‘stuff’ up for the next time.”

“Next time?” Ron and Clarence echoed in unison.

“Yes, the next time,” Gary said. “What makes you think this is over? The US has half the
world angry at it for one reason or another. George will probably just turn around and
send those troops back to Iraq and then where will we be?”

Monday, May 2, 2005…Palmdale, California

When they’d arrived back in Palmdale, Gary had Derek collect all of the weapons and
he stored them in his new basement. The 46 men and women who made up the
Palmdale militia returned to their homes and apartments. Lorrie and David moved back
to their home, as did Amy and DeWayne. It didn’t take much to move Clarence and Lu-
cy back either, but moving Ron and all of his ‘stuff’ was going to be a challenge. They
managed, somehow, and eventually life at the Olsen residence returned to normal.

Junior (Derek’s first father-in-law) had put up quite a fight over the custody of Derek,
Junior, but Derek had a trump card, the Palmdale militia. DJ made the trip back to Cali-
fornia with his Dad. Between May 2nd, when they’d arrived back and today, May 14th,
everyone just wanted to get home and return to their lives, such as they were. Bush was
back in the White House with a new Secret Service detail and had pushed to get the
country back to normal. About all he’d accomplished in the month since he and Laura
had been freed was get the news media back up. He was supposed to address the na-
tion on Monday the 16th.

“Sure hate to see you boys leave,” Gary said.

“I’d like to say it’s been fun Dad,” Derek replied, “But let’s just say it was interesting and
leave it at that.”

200
“What are you going to do when you get back to Iowa, Damon?” Gary asked.

“Look for a job,” Damon answered, “That’s what I’m good at, looking for a job.”

“You might try working for a change,” Gary said, “Maybe your job will last more than a
week.”

Derek pulled out in the Humvee they’d retrieved from the mine. He figured if he returned
it to the Iowa National Guard they might let it slide. He took more back with him than
he’d brought. The converted AR-15’s had been replaced by the real thing and they had
the M4-FA suppressors and M203 grenade launchers. He had taken 2 of the MP5’s and
they had fitted suppressors to his main battle rifles. Iowa didn’t allow machine guns,
sawed off shotguns or suppressors, so he was going to find someplace to keep them.

Damon left right after Derek and he took one of the MP5’s, too. He hugged his Dad,
fired up the Harley and was gone.

“Well dear,” Gary said to Sharon, “Either we have to get a bigger house or I’ve got to
quit inviting people to stay.”

“Did you finish the inventory of the food in the garage yet?” Sharon asked.

“Yep,” Gary said, “I figure we have enough pinto beans to last us to the year 2015.”

“They won’t last that long,” she said, “I’ve kind of gotten fond of them.”

“You realize, don’t you,” he said, “That once we replace the food, we’ll be ready for an
earthquake or anything else. And Ron called this morning. He finally has his arm out of
the sling.”

“How’s your head?” Sharon asked.

“The same,” Gary replied, “Empty.”

Actually, Gary and Sharon were in pretty good shape, financially. The bank had made
the April and May deposits and then sent Gary an email telling him that he was going to
have to go back to living on just the income from the trust. It pretty much looked like
they were going to stay in Palmdale too, there didn’t appear to be a housing market and
they probably couldn’t give their home away. Wasn’t it a shame that the bank that held
the mortgage on their home was in the blast area in downtown LA? Well, they’d save
the payments, just in case someone had duplicate records, but Gary didn’t really think
that was likely.

Monday, May 16, 2005…6pm PDT

My Fellow Americans, Bush began.

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These past 3 months have been a time that tried our faith in the American system of
government. Laura and I thought, more than once, that we were seeing the end of the
great experiment in Democracy. But, you, the American people, have restored our faith
in the system. The United States is a country of laws, not men. Several times in its 230-
year history, men have tried to wrestle control of the country from the people and all
have failed.

I have posted a $50 million dollar reward for information leading to the arrest and con-
viction of former General Wesley K. Clark on charges of treason, murder, and kidnap-
ping. I urge anyone who has any knowledge of his whereabouts to immediately contact
his or her nearest law enforcement office.

I have issued an Executive Order granting a General Amnesty to all of the brave men
and women who took up arms in the cause for freedom. You have 30 days to return any
illegal weapons in your possession to the nearest law enforcement agency. The amnes-
ty also applies to anyone in the possession of government property that they found nec-
essary to take in order to survive. After the amnesty period, the laws will be enforced.

I have determined that the information that I relied on to wage war on Iraq was inaccu-
rate and incomplete. We have removed the dictator Saddam Hussein and he faces trial
by the Iraqi people. Consequently I am continuing the recall of American forces from
Iraq, Afghanistan and Kosovo. When the states have appointed Representatives and
Senators to replace those members of Congress who lost their lives in the tragic events
of February 14th, I intend to introduce legislation designed to prevent the events of Feb-
ruary 14th from ever happening again.

God Bless America.

CNN hadn’t even switched to commentary before the phone rang.

“Hello?” Gary answered.

“Hey partner,” Ron’s voice came over the phone, “Did you catch the speech?”

“Yeah, it was Bush back to his normal self,” Gary said, “It was I this and I that and he
said God Bless America.”

“Are you going to turn in the stuff (weapons)?” Ron asked.

“Oh hell no,” Gary replied, “We gave them back all of their vehicles (they parked them at
the Palmdale Library). The stuff is all tucked away downstairs.”

“What are you going to do with the other stuff on your patio (40mm Mk-19 grenades and
.50BMG ammo)?” Ron asked.

202
“As soon as we get the other stuff boxed up,” Gary responded, “I’m going to rent a stor-
age locker. If you have any more questions, I’ll put on a pot of coffee and you can come
over and visit.”

“I’ll be right over,” Ron said.

When Ron arrived, Gary handed him the cup of coffee and the bottle of Sweet and Low.
They walked out to the patio and surveyed Gary’s progress at repacking the munitions.
Gary had Sharon drive him to the reopened U-Haul and had picked up several bundles
of boxes. Most of the ammo was repacked into U-Haul book boxes. Ron walked over
and opened an unsealed box. It was full of romance novels.

“What’s the deal with the books, partner?” Ron asked.

“Well, a box of ammo weights the same as a box of books,” Gary explained, “I made
sure of that. I went around the house and picked up the romance novels lying around to
box them up as a cover. Got some from Patti, too. Anyway, every box has a layer or two
of romance novels on the top.”

“I thought you got rid of the books,” Ron said.

“I did, too Ron,” Gary laughed, “But I missed a few. Patti had a dozen cases or more
shoved in one corner of Chris’s garage, too. He was grateful to get the space back.”

“Speaking of Chris, did you buy his guns? Ron asked.

“You bet and I paid him just what the market is at the moment, next to nothing,” Gary
laughed. “By the way, assume for the time being that the phones and Internet are still
tapped.”

“Why? Dubya is back in charge and things are going to get back to normal,” Ron said.

“Yeah, right,” Gary grimaced, “Did you catch the bit about he was going to introduce leg-
islation to prevent the events of February 14th from ever happening again?”

“I did, so what?” Ron asked.

“Think about it,” Gary said, “What kind of laws would prevent February 14th from every
happening again?”

“I have no idea,” Ron answered.

“Neither do I,” Gary admitted, “But I don’t like the implications.”

“Hmm,” Ron replied, “Can I store my suppressors and the other stuff we shouldn’t have
in your basement?”

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“Now you’re thinking Ron,” Gary said. “Of course, and I’d better get Clarence to do the
same.”

They went back inside, refilled their cups and moved to the office. Sharon still didn’t al-
low smoking in her house.

“Did you get the garage cleaned up?” Ron asked.

“Yep,” Gary replied, “I’m going to start restocking the food.”

“What’s the deal?” Ron asked, “The crisis is over.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that if I were you, partner,” Gary shook his head. “The crisis
might just be beginning.”

“What do you mean by that?” Ron asked. “Bush is back in power. They’ve already start-
ed to rebuild the cities and life is starting to get back to normal. Well, as normal as pos-
sible under the circumstances.”

“Our friend Wes Clark is running around loose somewhere and I think that this is just the
calm before the storm,” Gary opined.

“He’s a crazy SOB,” Ron laughed, “He isn’t any threat. Besides, with a $50 million re-
ward, they’ll have him locked up in no time.”

“I wasn’t necessarily thinking about Clark, partner,” Gary said, “Although he is a con-
cern. We have half the world po’d at us. I’m surprised that they didn’t attack or invade
the US during the recent crisis.”

“Well, I’ll fill in my food and supplies,” Ron said, “But I think it is a waste of money.”

Gary finished boxing up ‘the stuff’ and rented a storage locker for ‘Sharon’s books’. Wal-
ton Feed wasn’t back in business full time, so they just shopped the community and re-
stocked the food as best that they could. Oh, the gun store reopened, and Gary spent
his last bit of money on a M1A Super Match, just like Ron’s.

When September rolled around and the bank made a large income distribution to the
trust, Gary bought another used 2,200-gallon propane tank and had it filled. Clarence
had put in a used 2,200-gallon tank, too, and one of those 3,000-gallon plastic water
tanks. Ron had found a used 1,000-gallon propane tank and all three men had nearly
identical capacities to survive whatever happened next. The states had appointed re-
placement Representatives and Senators to the Congress and Congress resumed on
the Tuesday, a week after Labor Day. True to his word, Bush introduced a new law; it
would change the USA Patriot Act into the most invasive law in the history of the coun-
try.

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 Preparations – Chapter 40 – USA Patriot Act II

The new, timid Congress all but rubber-stamped Bush’s proposed changes to the USA
Patriot Act, and the media were calling the new law the USA Patriot Act II. The news
media had replaced their deceased anchors and reporters with another bunch of liber-
als. Where did they find these people, under a rock? The new law looked like it circum-
vented a lot more of the Constitutional protections, too. The Supreme Court members
had all been killed off on February 14th and Bush got to do what no other President had
been able to do since George Washington, pack the Court. Again, the Senate rubber-
stamped his choices. All except for Senator Kerry who had been appointed to fill Ken-
nedy’s seat.

Gary had been right, under the revised law; you couldn’t fart without a dozen federal
agencies getting a whiff. Gary had been out on the net researching the history of the
USA Patriot Act and it made for interesting reading.

The Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center created a climate that made passage
of the USA Patriot Act possible, a specialist on immigration rights for the American Civil
Liberties Union of New Jersey said recently at a panel discussion. The actual title of the
law was Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to
Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) ACT OF 2001. The actual original
title of USA Patriot Act II was Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003.

“It’s been a law enforcement wish list but was never introduced because the public cli-
mate was not right,” said Parastou Hassouri, one of the panelists at a recent forum on
balancing civil liberties and the USA Patriot Act, held at the Navesink Library in Mid-
dletown.

The panel discussion was hosted by the Monmouth County Friends of the American
Civil Liberties Union.

The event, which drew a crowd of about 150, was co-sponsored by the Greater Red
Bank Area League of Women Voters, the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Mon-
mouth County, and the Quakers Shrewsbury Friends Meeting.

Panelists, in addition to Hassouri, immigrant rights project specialist for the ACLU, were
Robert A. Honecker Jr., first assistant prosecutor of Monmouth County; and Grayson
Barber, immediate past chair of the Individual Rights Section of the New Jersey State
Bar Association. Deborah Jacobs, executive director of the ACLU, moderated the panel.

Hassouri told a standing-room-only crowd that the WTC attacks created a climate that
allowed passage of the USA Patriot Act in October 2001 but the roots of the legislation
go back further.

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According to Hassouri, it’s unlikely that the lengthy, 342-page legislation which amends
at least 15 other statutes was drafted so soon after 9/11.

Instead, she said the general consensus is that the impetus for the USA Patriot Act, and
possibly the drafting of large parts of the legislation, likely followed the bombing of the
federal building in Oklahoma City in 1994.

The USA Patriot Act, she said, has two major thrusts: it authorizes government action to
be taken in secret and it undermines checks and balances on executive power.

Addressing the issue from the law enforcement perspective, Honecker told the panel
the USA Patriot Act has contributed to the fight against terrorism by allowing govern-
ment agencies to share information. The act allows law enforcement agencies to en-
gage in activities against terrorism and other individuals involved in criminal activities in
the United States, he noted.

For example, he said the USA Patriot Act has a judicially authorized “sneak and peek”
provision that allows law enforcement agencies to perform a search but delay notifica-
tion for a period of up to three months.

“This opportunity is something necessary when dealing with terrorists,” he said.

Honecker acknowledged that the provision “is a departure from what is traditional,” and
has been criticized because the US Constitution bars unreasonable search and seizure.

“In my opinion,” he told those in attendance, “if used in a limited number of circum-
stances, it may save lives. Then it contributes to the safety of our citizens.

“It is important for us to take what we can from the USA Patriot Act and use it on a local
level.”

Barber, chair of the ACLU-NJ Privacy Committee, countered Honecker.

“The USA Patriot Act,” she said, “amounts to government in secret because it provides
for the issuance of search warrants in secret without probable cause.

“The framers of the Constitution created a balance of powers by adopting the Fourth
Amendment which protects against unreasonable searches and seizures,” she added.

“The government must have probable cause a crime is to be committed,” she said. “The
USA Patriot Act changes that. The government doesn’t need that any more. The USA
Patriot Act permits secret orders without probable cause to investigate people who are
not suspects.”

“That means the government has the right to investigate people’s activities at libraries,
mosques, synagogues and political rallies,” she added.

206
Hassouri said sections of the USA Patriot Act permit a person suspected of being in-
volved with a terrorist organization to be held for up to seven days.

“The charge doesn’t have to be terrorism related,” she noted. “Before the USA Patriot
Act, a person could be held for [no more than] 24 hours.”

Honecker said legislators who voted to pass the USA Patriot Act regarded the measure
as “an emergency response” and the act incorporates a sunset provision.

“In 2005 many of the controversial issues identified by the ACLU will end,” he noted.

Hastily enacted, debate should take place on the issue of whether sections of the act
should sunset, Honecker said. However, he said “in certain circumstances [the USA Pa-
triot Act] has allowed law enforcement to save lives.”

“Whether the USA Patriot Act extends too far is what this discussion is about,” he told
members of the audience, some of whom later peppered him with queries during a
question and answer period that followed the panel.

Later, in response to a query from an audience member, Honecker said he was in favor
of amending the act to make it consistent with the Fourth Amendment by including
probable cause.

“When it comes to the safety of citizens, it has to be thought out what is fair and good
for the citizens of this country.

“It has caused citizens to find themselves in secret files,” retorted Jacobs. “The trouble
is the USA Patriot Act takes our system out of balance. We had checks and balances
and now we don’t.”

Hassouri said since 9/11 there “have been countless attacks on immigrant rights” and
the media has failed to report on these incidents.

“There’s a real climate of insecurity and fear raging in a lot of the immigrant communi-
ties,” she said. “It is a dangerous path we’re going down. The notion of what it means to
be an American, to be a citizen.”

“Certainly in this community we will take every opportunity to guarantee individual rights
for all citizens,” said Honecker. “We will ... do everything we can to protect you. If that
means we must go out and arrest people who want to do you harm, we will. But we will
do it within the context that respects your individual rights.”

During the question and answer session, Honecker said the USA Patriot Act “has given
us the opportunity to be more aggressive in our surveillance.

207
“I think law enforcement efforts since 9/11 have done a significant amount to disrupt ter-
ror activities and have deterred criminal activities,” he said.

According to Honecker, members of local police departments are now trained in counter
terrorism, “We never did that before 9/11,” he said, “and individuals are reporting suspi-
cious behavior. It’s a more comprehensive network post-9/11, and that mechanism in
and of itself has deterred terror activities.”

Honecker said the USA Patriot Act has had a significant impact on the way laws are en-
forced by the county prosecutor. Since 9/11 he spends 50 percent of his day involved in
dealing with terror-related activities, he explained.

“It’s more a process of information sharing,” he said, involving local citizens, local law
enforcement officials, the prosecutor’s office and the FBI.

“We’re trying to share information so a piece is not missed.”

[Authors Note: I do not like the USA Patriot Act because it goes against the letter and
spirit of the US Constitution. USA Patriot Act II was drafted but never introduced, nor
acted upon, apparently, until now.]

“Derek’s on the phone,” Sharon said.

“Hi Derek, how are you doing?” Gary asked.

“So-so Dad,” Derek answered.

“What’s up? Junior trying to get DJ back?” Gary asked.

“We just got back from Bolivar, Dad,” Derek said, “Junior died and Brenda says that DJ
might as well stay with us.”

“Sorry to hear about Junior,” Gary said, “But that’s good news about DJ. How did things
work out with the Guard?”

“General Amnesty covered everything Dad,” Derek said, “Besides, most of my unit
bugged out before it was over, so they didn’t know where to start punishing people.”

“What about the job? Are you back to work?” Gary continued grilling Derek.

“Same miserable job as before. Oh, Damon called, he got a job installing insulation up
in Mason City,” Derek reported.

“That won’t last,” Gary suggested.

“I don’t know about that, he’s been on it 3 weeks so far,” Derek laughed, “That’s the

208
longest he’s held a job since he was driving truck.”

“Did you find some place to put, you know,” Gary asked.

“Added an extension to the lower level,” Derek explained. “I’d love to visit, but it isn’t a
good idea, if you get my drift.”

“Perfectly,” Gary said and hung up. Gary got out his King James Bible and dusted it off;
it was going to be like that again.

Gary dialed Ron.

“Hello?” Linda answered.

“It’s me is he there?” Gary asked.

“Well, yes, what’s up,” she asked.

“Not over the phone,” Gary said, “Ask him to drop by muy pronto.”

Gary had barely hung up the phone and gotten a cup of coffee before Ron arrived.

“What’s so urgent that you couldn’t talk over the phone Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“Have you seen the summary of the new USA Patriot Act II provisions on CNN?” Gary
asked.

“No, why?” Ron wanted to know.

“Bush rolled the Assault Weapons Ban into the new Act and eliminated all of the sunset
provisions,” Gary explained. “Plus, he added some new provisions that take away more
rights.”

“Congress will never go along with that,” Ron said.

“Bull hockey Ronald,” Gary said, “The only dissenting vote was Senator Kerry. It’s been
passed and signed into law. And, get this; the new magazine capacity limit is 7 rounds.
Plus, they added the M1A and all other kinds of other rifles to the prohibited list.”

“Kerry voted AGAINST the new law?” Ron repeated, “God help us.”

“It may just take more than God to help us out of this one pard,” Gary said, “I’ve really
got a bad feeling about this. By the way, it’s not officially called the USA Patriot Act II.
It’s called Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2005, although the MSM is calling it
USA Patriot Act II.”

209
“I see that house on the corner is still empty,” Ron observed.

“That and the one on either side of us Ron,” Gary said. “Those folks from San Francisco
are dead and the other two homes are back on the market.”

“Lyn and I were talking when you called,” Ron said. “We like that house down on the
corner better than the one we have. And there’s no pool to maintain. We’re thinking
about buying it subject to our home selling.”

“You going to move again?” Gary asked.

“Yep,” Ron affirmed. “And then when I what to talk to you I can just stick my head out
the door and yell, ‘Hey butthead’.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 41 – Old Home Week

“Hi Gary, this is Clarence,” Clarence announced on the phone.

“Hi Clarence, get all settled in?” Gary asked.

“That’s sort of why I called, Gary,” Clarence explained, “Is that house that Lucy and I
lived in still empty?”

“Yeah, the people who bought it got killed in San Francisco. Why?” Gary inquired.

“Well, my sister and I were talking and she wants a home of her own,” Clarence replied,
“Lucy and I talked it over and we kind of liked that house. Anyway, I can sell my house
to my sister on a land sale contract and put a bid on that house.”

“That’s almost funny Clarence, Ron was over last night and Linda and he are going to
buy the house on the corner,” Gary related.

“Really?” Clarence said. “He probably just wants to be able to stick his head out the
door and call you butthead,”

“Those were his very words, pal,” Gary admitted. “Well, I hope you get the house, it will
be nice for all of us to be living here together.”

“Who was that, honey?” Sharon asked.

“Clarence, dear,” Gary said, “Lucy and he are thinking about buying Dan and Dawn’s
house. That’s sort of strange, too. Last night Ron said that Linda and he were buying
the Klein’s house.”

“You might just as well move a bed down to Ron and Linda’s for all I’ll see of you,” Sha-
ron commented.

“Actually, I was thinking that we out to buy the house between ours and Chris and Pat-
ti’s,” Gary said, “This house is paid for thanks to the nuke and if we bought that house,
we’d have somewhere for the kids to live every time they moved home.”

“Can we afford it?” Sharon asked.

“With the housing market the way it is?” Gary laughed, “We can get it for a song. In fact,
we ought to just have Amy and DeWayne move in now. They can pay us rent instead of
someone else.”

“Or not pay us like they’re not paying their landlord,” Sharon said.

“Whatever,” Gary smiled. “I figure we can run a computer network to Clarence’s, Amy’s,

211
Patti’s and Ron’s. If we do that, I can upgrade my DSL access to the higher access rate
at $150 a month. Since everyone is paying $30 a month, Amy will get free access and
we’ll all have faster access.”

Before Sharon had insisted that Gary buy her a computer back in 2004, that suggestion
would have surely started a fight. However, it made sense now, it wouldn’t cost them
any extra for faster access, so she was all for it. Gary ordered a package deal from
3Com that included an 8-port unmanaged 10/100/1000 Office Connect switch and 6 1-
gig NIC’s. He was going to have secure communications up and down the line at high-
speed to boot.

01Nov05…

Gary didn’t know if it had been Ron and Clarence moving to the tract, his buying the
house next door and moving Amy in or just what. But, even Chris was getting on the
bandwagon. Sharon and he had gotten the house cheap, the bank must have been
desperate, and so far, Amy was making the rent payments. It probably helped that they
only charged her the P & I plus a prorated share of the taxes each month, but so far, so
good. Gary had picked up a RS 45000 Onan natural gas/propane generator for the
house with a 400 amp ATS and a second plastic water tank. Chris had put in a water
tank, a diesel generator and an underground fuel tank. It must have been Patti’s doing,
Chris only had money to spend on that race car.

Patti had made Chris erect a metal shed in their back yard and she and Sharon had
been hitting Costco and Sam’s Club pretty hard stocking up on food. Rooting around in
the basement, while cleaning guns and restacking the ammo, Gary had found an over-
looked Surefire suppressor and had installed it on his Super Match. He had done the
‘shift’ routine and moved rifle sights, too. The Loaded M1A was without a scope, but that
suited him just fine. A man had to have one rifle he could grub around in the dirt with
without worrying about knocking the sights out of alignment. White’s Surplus had a sale
on ALICE web gear and he’d stocked up on that too. The ALICE gear had proven to be
the best choice; he’d heard that there were a lot of complaints that the MOLLE stuff had
caused problems in Iraq.

After Ron moved in, they reestablished the OP in the northeast bedroom. This new gi-
gabit network was really nice, too. They could communicate using the Net Meeting
software and since it was an intranet meeting, it was totally secure. They all just activat-
ed the software and kept it running minimized in their taskbars. They had time now to
undo earlier mistakes and fill in gaps in their preparations. And, since they weren’t in the
middle of any emergency, they could do it far more cheaply; although, there weren’t
many loose ends by this time. Gary finally retired the straw hat, too. Got him a new one,
just like the first hat. He told everyone when this hat bit the dust they could just bury
him. Ron wanted to know if they really had to wait.

212
General Clark was born on 23 December 1944 and grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas.
He is married to the former Gertrude Kingston of Brooklyn, New York. He and his wife
have one son, Wesley, who lived in California. Wesley was back in Littlerock, one word
not two. Littlerock, one word not two, is five miles southeast of Palmdale, California on
highway 138. It was the ideal place for good old Wes to hide. It was a tiny town barely 4
blocks long and once you got away from the main drag, the houses were spaced about
¼ to ½ mile apart. Wes, Gertrude, Wesley, Jr. and 2 aides were living in the home north
of Littlerock. The Clarks hadn’t left the home since they had arrived in April; and, the
aides handled any shopping that was needed.

There had been Clark sightings all over the country and at several locations in Europe.
It seemed that everyone and their brother wanted the $50 million. The US Marshal Ser-
vice (formed September 24, 1789) patiently checked out every single lead, but to no
avail. One wouldn’t think that someone as prominent as Wesley K. Clark would have
been so hard to find, but they were running out of leads. They even had a lead come in
from Palmdale, CA, but when they went to check, the tipster turned out to be a drunk
and there was no sign of the aircraft that was missing from Mt. Weather. It was just an-
other dead end.

When Sharon heard one news report that Clark might have gone to France, she said
that the US ought to nuke France just on general principle, in case Clark was there.
And, if he weren’t, it would be no great loss. Gary told Sharon that a lot of the Squirrels
felt that way, but she didn’t have any idea what he was talking about.

Friday, 11Nov05…

The Department of Homeland Security had made so many announcements about pos-
sible terrorist attacks that the American public had begun to ignore the announcements.
It seemed that every holiday was an excuse for another announcement. Besides, with
the American troops out of Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq and Korea, most of the hot spots
had been defused.

The Iraqis had held their January 2005 elections and elected a new government. The
fact that a civil war broke out shortly thereafter had nothing to do with the US and Bush
had pulled the troops out, so what was there to worry about? The Saudis had finally ar-
rested everyone who refused the amnesty program back in 2004 and Iran had submit-
ted to nuclear inspections. North Korea was still balking, but was new about that? They
had been balking since 1952 over one thing or another.

Gary, Ron and Clarence were playing Hearts on the network. So far, Clarence was way
ahead of the other two men; he must be cheating, somehow. Gary thought he heard
something, but, being deaf in the right ear, dismissed it as noise from the fan sitting in
the door of his office to blow the smoke out the window. The Net Meeting icon began to
blink in the tray, indicating someone wanted to communicate with someone else. Gary

213
clicked the program up to see what was up. “Turn on CNN!!!” the message said.

Gary went to the living room and turned on the TV.

…16 shot down a United Airlines 747 at 8:46 pm Eastern Standard Time. The plane
was apparently hijacked shortly after takeoff from Los Angeles International Airport. The
White House is expected to make an announcement at 9pm eastern in about 7 minutes.

Reports from the site of the crash indicate that there were no survivors. Sources tell
CNN that the flight was a charter flight returning veterans representing servicemen from
all wars from the dedication ceremony held earlier today at the new Los Angeles Coli-
seum named after Vietnam sniper Carlos Hathcock.

Hathcock, you may remember was a decorated Marine sniper who killed approximately
300 enemy soldiers in Vietnam. Hathcock died February 23, 1999, a victim of multiple
sclerosis. The North Vietnamese put a $30,000 bounty on his head and called him
‘Long Trang’ or White Feather. Springfield Armory acknowledged Hathcock with a spe-
cial edition, the M25 White Feather Tactical/Carlos Hathcock model M1A.

The veterans included veterans from World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the
Vietnam War and both Gulf Wars. CNN estimates that the death toll was nearly 300, in-
cluding the flight crew. The FAA has been unusually quiet concerning who the hijackers
were. Speculation is running from another group of al Qaeda terrorists to a militia group
from Palmdale, California known as the Palmdale Militia. This so-called militia was in-
strumental in the taking of Ft. Leonard Wood earlier this year during that crisis. Sources
tell CNN that the group included 48 former members of the California National Guard
and was led by three seniors from the Palmdale area. We take you now to the White…

The door burst open with a crack of breaking wood.

“US Marshals, freeze!” came the command.

There were three big men standing just inside the doorway, pointing guns at Gary. Gary
froze. One of the men walked around the couch and a yanked Gary to a standing posi-
tion and then roughly turned him around and placed handcuffs on his wrists. Gary didn’t
say a word, to his credit.

“Are you Gary Olsen?” one of the Marshals asked.

“Olsen, Gary D., civilian, 4X4-XX-2XX0, 23Mar1943,” Gary replied.

Mr. Olsen you are under arrest,” the Marshal said.

“What’s the charge?” Gary asked.

“Suspicion of hijacking an airliner,” the Marshal replied.

214
“CNN just said there were no survivors,” Gary said, “How did I hijack an airline and end
up in Palmdale alive?”

“You have the right to remain silent,” the Marshal said, “You have the right to speak to
an attorney and have one present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorney,
one will be appointed for you. Do you understand these rights Mr. Olsen?”

“Yes,” Gary said.

“Having these rights in mind,” the agent continued, “Do you wish to speak with us now?”

“All right copper, ya got me,” Gary said, “I ain’t saying nuttin til I get a mouthpiece.”

“You don’t seem to be taking this very serious Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal observed.

“I ain’t saying nuttin til I get a mouthpiece,” Gary repeated.

“Do you have any particular attorney in mind Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said, mostly to
humor Gary.

“I want Johnny Cochran,” Gary said.

“Why him?” the Marshal couldn’t resist.

“He got OJ off,” Gary said, “And if he could get OJ off, he can get anyone off.”

Gary noticed Clarence was handcuffed and being hustled into a black Suburban. He
looked the other way and Ron was just disappearing into another Suburban. They drove
for over an hour to the federal building on Wilshire Boulevard in West Los Angeles.
Each man was taken to a separate room and the handcuffs removed; only to be re-
placed by a handcuff attached to the table. Then the waiting began. There was a mirror
on the wall and Gary presumed that was the infamous piece of one-way glass. About 30
minutes later, a marshal entered the room.

“Mr. Olsen, would you like something to drink?” the Marshal asked.

“I’ll take a Coke,” Gary replied.

“Your file says you’re a diabetic, Mr. Olsen, you want a diet Coke, right?” the Marshal
said.

“Hell no, I’m tough, bring me the real thing,” Gary said, “You have a file on me?”

215
 Preparations – Chapter 42 – The 2” File

“We have your FBI file Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said.

“FBI file? What FBI file,” Gary asked.

“You’re quite the character Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said, “You file is over two inches
thick.”

“Must have written down every time I went to the toilet,” Gary thought.

The Marshal left the room. About 30 minutes later, he entered the room.

“You’re free to go Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said.

“I want my attorney,” Gary said.

“I said that you were free to go,” the Marshal repeated.

“Yeah, well, I still want my attorney,” Gary said.

“What for Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said, “You and your friends have been cleared.”

“For false arrest for beginners,” Gary said, “And for cruel and unusual punishment for
another.”

“Cruel and unusual punishment?” the Marshal said, “That’s ridiculous.”

“You brought me a Coke, right?” Gary said.

“Yes Mr. Olsen, I brought you a Coke, so what?” the Marshal said.

“Well, you didn’t come back and ask me if I had to go to the bathroom,” Gary said, “And
I peed my pants. That’s Cruel and Unusual Punishment in my book.”

“So sue me,” the Marshal said.

“I intend to,” Gary said, “Can I look at my file now?”

“Oh what the hell, why not,” the Marshal said.

The file was indeed 2” thick. It had copies of every security clearance request that had
ever been processed on Gary. And, it had copies of every application for a Concealed
Weapons permit that he’d ever applied for. It also had a copy of a report submitted by
the resident agent in Davenport, Iowa back when he’d helped the ATF out on some
case he’d completely forgotten about. That was it. No criminal record, no suspicion on

216
wrong doing, no nothing.”

“Marshal, why did you arrest us?” Gary asked.

“We got a tip, Mr. Olsen, from a woman, that you folks were involved,” the Marshal said.

“A woman, huh?” Gary said, “Would that be Kathy or Marie?”

The marshal didn’t answer, but Gary could see he’d guessed right from the look on the
Marshal’s face. That narrowed it down. It must have been Kathy; all of Marie’s brains
were below her chin. Boy would Ronald crap. He’d probably track the broad down and
well, maybe he’d better not say anything to Ron, there was no telling what Ron might do
to her. And, how did Kathy know about the Palmdale militia anyway?

Arrested as they had been, the men had no idea what Bush had talked about. They
asked and a marshal gave them a copy of The Daily News. For those who don’t know,
Pravda West, as some call the LA Times, had it offices in downtown Los Angeles, near
the location where the bomb had gone off on February 14th, 2005. The Chicago Tribune
Company owned the Los Angeles Times and neither paper had rebuilt after the Valen-
tine’s Day Massacre. The Daily News was a real rag and had none of the text of Bush’s
speech.

After the marshals dropped them off at their homes, Ron said, “What the hell was that
all about?”

“They had a tip, Ron, from a woman, that we were involved,” Gary said.

“I’m going to kill her!” Ron exclaimed.

“Kill who Ron?” Gary asked.

“Kathy. Marie can barely dial a phone,” Ron said. Oh well.

“They have a 2” file on me,” Gary said.

“Mine’s only half that thick,” Ron chuckled.

“Don’t have no file on me,” Clarence added.

“That’s because you’re dull, Clarence,” Ron said.

“Ain’t neither,” Clarence said, “I’m sharp, and I never got caught once.”

“Do tell,” Ron said.

217
“I didn’t tell, that’s why I got no file,” Clarence laughed and returned to his home.

“I wonder what Bush said,” Gary commented.

“Probably that the Palmdale Militia was behind the whole thing,” Ron complained.

“We spent longer going to and from than we did in their office,” Ron observed, “Maybe
they’ll have a rerun of the speech on CNN.”

“I doubt it,” Gary said, “Go to their website, they’ll have the complete speech.”

My Fellow Americans,

This evening the United States Air Force, acting under my direct orders, was forced to
shoot down a 747 jet airliner. That airliner subsequently crashed into a field in West Vir-
ginia. The aircraft in question had been hijacked and the hijackers threatened to crash
the plane into the White House. I had no choice in this matter.

The FBI is currently investigating this incident and the White House will keep you in-
formed of any developments. Regrettably, 288 Veterans and 13 crewmembers lost their
lives in the crash. Initial reports that a group called the Palmdale Militia being involved
were incorrect. However, three members of the militia were being brought in for ques-
tioning. I repeat these individuals have been cleared of any wrong doing with regard to
this crash.

God Bless America.

The phone rang and it was Ron.

“Did they ask you anything?” Ron inquired.

“Nope,” Gary said.

“Then, why were we brought in for questioning?” Ron asked.

“You got me, they didn’t even search the house according to Sharon,” Gary explained.

“I called Clarence,” Ron said, “They didn’t ask him anything either.”

“But the President’s speech,” Gary protested, “He said we weren’t guilty of anything and
they were bringing us anyway for questioning. What the frick is going on here?”

“Maybe that Marshal lied to you,” Ron suggested, “And there wasn’t really a tip.”

“But he sort of reacted when I said Kathy or Marie,” Gary insisted.

218
“It could have all been an act,” Ron said, “Come on over. I’m going to call Clarence
back; we need to talk.”

A little after 10pm…the OP…

“Something stinks to high Heaven,” Ron suggested. “Bush went on national TV and
mentioned us by name. He said we weren’t involved but they were bringing us in any
way for questioning. And then, they didn’t ask us squat.”

“Ronald, that Marshal said I was under arrest,” Gary added.

“Me, too,” Clarence said.

“Yeah, same here,” Ron agreed.

“I don’t know about the two of you,” Gary said, “But I think I’m going to contact the
ACLU.”

“Hold on there, partner, won’t that just make the government react?” Ron suggested.
“They didn’t search any of our homes. But, if we sue them for false arrest, who knows
what they’ll do to cover their butts? Besides, do you want to get hooked up with that
bunch of liberals?”

“Listen pal, the ACLU has been getting a bad rap for years,” Gary said. “You remember
Michael Douglas’s speech near the end of that movie, The American President?”

“Sort of, yeah. What does that have to do with anything?” Ron asked.

“That was one thing Hollywood got about right,” Gary explained. “The ACLU exists to
support and defend the Constitution of the United States. I remember back a few years
ago. Some bunch of Nazi’s wanted to march in Skokie, Illinois. Skokie is mostly Jewish
and included some of the Holocaust survivors. Anyway, the ACLU, which includes a lot
of Jews, sued the City of Skokie because they wouldn’t let the Nazi’s march. Said that
the city violated freedom of speech and freedom of assembly laws or something like
that. They won, too. I wouldn’t give you a dime for the whole bunch; but, our rights were
violated and they’re the boys to take on the government.”

“Count me out Gar-Bear,” Ron said. “I’m going to keep a low profile.”

“I’m with Ron on this one Gary,” Clarence said, “Count me out, too.”

“All right, I’ll let it pass, if that’s the way you feel,” Gary said, “But those folks should
have had have a psychological profile in my FBI file. They done screwed the pooch.”

“What’s he mean by that, Ron?” Clarence asked, ignoring Gary.

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“Clarence, you are looking at the epitome of the Passive-Aggressive personality,” Ron
chuckled. “Gary doesn’t get mad, but he’ll go to the ends of the earth to get even. Gar-
Bear, whatever happened to that coffee cup you used to have?”

“You mean my ‘I don’t get mad, I just get even cup’?” Gary asked, “Cup got broke. But, I
got even.”

“Just what we need,” Ron said, “A guy with a room full of machine guns, grenade
launchers and stolen military property taking on the US government. Maybe I can buy
my house back.”

“Are you going to move AGAIN?” Gary asked. “Forget it. Remember what Khan said.”

“Huh?” Clarence replied. “Do you guys explain everything in the terms of movies? I’ll
bite, what did Khan say?”

“Gary’s referring to a Klingon proverb that tells us revenge is a dish that is best served
cold,” Ron explained.

“Yeah, so?” Clarence asked.

“Gar-Bear won’t be doing anything rash, Clarence,” Ron smiled. “He’s going to take his
time. But, he’ll get even; you can count on that.”

“I’m going home and go to bed,” Gary said, “I do my best thinking in my sleep. Good
night guys.”

12Nov05…

Gary got Chris and Dick to help him repair the front door where the Marshals had
crashed through the night before. It had been a nice door, but it was a total loss. They
ended up going to Lowe’s and buying a new door and frame. Gary picked out a steel
commercial door. Gary selected the ReliaBilt 36” 6-Panel No Brick Mould Steel Door
Unit because it didn’t have a window and was relatively inexpensive.

He asked Chris to fashion him some straps to hold a plank he could drop in place
across the door. If they came back, they weren’t coming through that door again. That
evening, Gary went out on the net looking for window shutters. He found just what he
was looking for at a website gardiandoors dot com that sold roll down shutters. Since
the website was up, he presumed they were still in business. He wrote down the phone
number to call them on Monday. He’d had a couple of thoughts the previous night in his
sleep. The feds were going to pay for making him pee his pants, and you could take that
to the bank.

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 Preparations – Chapter 43 – The Shutters

14Nov05…

“They’re how much?” Gary asked again.

The man repeated the price for the roll down shutters.

“Uh, thank you,” Gary said, “But I think I’ll have to pass. And you say that they’re alumi-
num, not steel, right?”

“Yes sir,” the salesman said, “But they are very strong.”

“Thanks again,” Gary said and hung up.

Gary walked down to Ron’s.

“I called and checked on those roll down window shutters,” Gary advised Ron, “I think
that they must be made out of gold, not aluminum.”

“What do you want those for?” Ron asked. “The houses are stucco. Even if you put in
steel shutters, the walls wouldn’t stop a bullet.”

“In my next lifetime, I’m going to build a brick house with ¾” steel plate shutters,” Gary
said.

“If you’re in a hurry,” Ron laughed, “I’d be willing to help you out.”

“God you’re ugly,” Gary changed the subject.

“That’s the pot calling the kettle black,” Ron smirked. “So did anything come to you in
your dreams?”

“Yep. Can we drive down to that range on Angeles Crest?” Gary asked. “I need to get
familiar with those .50 caliber rifles.”

“What, you’re going to take on the federal government singled handed with a .50 caliber
rifle?” Ron asked.

“Well, not exactly Ronald McDonald,” Gary said, “Not directly anyway, but I have an
idea how to keep those government folks chasing their tails.”

Under the new Assault Weapons Ban, the .50 caliber rifles were illegal for anyone to
own except for LEO’s and the military. So, the M107 with its Reflex suppressor, 10-
round magazine, etc. was just about as illegal as a rifle could be. Damon. Bless his
heart, had come up with several of the 80-round boxes of the .50BMG ammo that IMI

221
loaded for Barrett. Gary took two boxes with him to the range. 160-rounds later, his
shoulder was pretty sore, padded shooting jacket notwithstanding. But, old Gar-Bear
could handle the Tac-50. He fired a few shots with the M82A1M to verify it was still
good to go. Derek had the second TAC-50.

Just because Gary didn’t have a California Driver’s License didn’t mean he couldn’t
drive a car, either. He had been a fair to middling driver, back when. He just needed
some non-descript beater that no one would give a second look at. He had Ron drop
him off at the AV Mall on the way home. He had some shopping to do. Ron told him to
call when he was ready to be picked up and he’d come back for him. Gary took a
screwdriver out of the glove box and said he’d call when he was ready. As luck would
have it, there were two Toyota’s parked next to each other in the parking lot, one with
the keys in the ignition. Gary used the screwdriver to change the plates, hopped in and
drove off with the car. It was Grand Theft Auto! Or was it? The car he took wasn’t worth
$500, so maybe it was Minor Theft Auto.

Chris told Gary it wouldn’t take much to get the beater running, but where had it come
from? Gary told him he’d found it abandoned with the keys in the ignition. Chris figured
that was a likely story, but he went to Chief Auto parts and got the parts to get the junk
heap running. He had it parked in front of Gary and Sharon’s before 10pm. He gave
Gary the keys, Gary paid him for the work and Chris went home. Gary got his TAC-50
and hopped in the car. His plan wasn’t elaborate, just something to irritate folks and
keep the LEO’s and troops running in circles.

It took 3 shots to hit the insulator. Buzz, zap. The line fell sending up a shower of
sparks. He did better on the next insulator; it went down with the first shot. Buzz, zap.
He looked over his shoulder. The lights were out in Palmdale. Gary drove north to Lake
Los Angeles and back to Palmdale from there. It would take Edison the better part of a
day to get the power back on and people would sure be po’d. Of course, the LEO’s
wouldn’t suspect a 62-year old cripple had done the deed, so Gary sort of figured he
was home free. Hell, they’d be running in circles looking for whoever did it. He parked
the car in Grecian Isles and walked home carrying the rifle case. This was the most
dangerous part of the whole adventure.

Gary put the rifle away and sat down at his computer. Net Meeting was flashing and he
clicked it up. Call me, it said and the sender was Ron.

“What’s up Ron?” Gary asked.

“Where have you been?” Ron asked.

“If you’re up, how about I come over?” Gary suggested.

“Ciao,” Ron replied.

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3 minutes later in the OP…

“If they catch you,” Ron said, “They’re going to lock you up and throw away the key.”

“Whatever are you talking about, partner,” Gary asked.

“Oh just some guy I know on a one-man campaign to stir up hate and discontent by
driving around in a stolen Toyota shooting up high line insulators,” Ron said. “Next time,
let us know. Clarence and I will be glad to join you.”

“You said count me out,” Gary protested.

“I was talking about suing the government Gar-Bear, but channel 3 says the power will
be off all night,” Ron retorted. “They seem to be blaming the government for having lax
security. So, count me in.”

15Nov05…

“This is a warrant to search these premises,” the marshal said.

“Go for it,” Gary replied. “Oh, there are two handguns in my sock drawer, a .22 and a
.32.”

The Marshals spent most of the day searching Gary, Ron and Clarence homes.

“You’re in the clear Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said, “But we’ll be keeping an eye on you.”

“Why?” Gary asked, “Did someone hijack another airliner?”

Come to think of it, there hadn’t been a word on TV about that shoot down, was the
government hiding something? As far as Gary was concerned, there wasn’t any urgen-
cy to the project he had under taken. And, if he went down 14 a ways and took out
some of those insulators, it would knock out power to the San Fernando Valley. And,
while he was at it, it wasn’t all that far to Ventura… Hmm, if he could come up with
some dynamite, there were a couple of pipelines that were easy to get at, too. Why not,
it had worked for good old Wes! Where was that SOB anyway?

Gary went out on the net because he was pretty sure the feds would be back. He was
looking for some way to block the ground penetration radar they were sure to bring. It
was so simple, that it was absurd. And, he had the one piece of equipment you needed
to screw up the ground penetrating radar. Hell, half the people in America had the de-
vice maybe more. It had better work, too. Otherwise he would just be a number some-
where.

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16Nov05…

“Ronald,” Gary said on the phone, “Can you come down for a minute?”

“Be right there partner, Ciao,” Ron said.

“Look, Ron, I need your help,” Gary explained. “I want to put in a bomb shelter.”

“What for Gar-Bear?” Ron asked, “You expecting the Russians to attack?”

“No, it’s a decoy,” Gary said.

“Huh?” Ron came back.

“Look, I found out on the net last night that there’s a way to interfere with ground pene-
trating radar,” Gary explained. “But, I want the feds to think they have found something
and maybe I won’t have to test whether or not that works.”

“What did you have in mind?” Ron asked.

“Do you remember in The Ark how I built that hidden tunnel entrance?” Gary asked.

“No,” Ron said, “But continue.”

“Ok. We’ll dig down about 10’ and put in an 8’ square concrete block room and roof it
with some of that surplus plate steel, and pour some concrete over it,” Gary explained.
“We can build a hidden entrance to the room, like in my story. I’ll stock the room with
some food and water and cots. When the feds show up with their ground penetrating
radar, they’ll find the room but no entrance. I’ll make a fuss and then show them how to
get in. Maybe they won’t even bother with the house.”

“And if they do?’ Ron asked.

“Well, that’s plan B,” Gary said. “You see, you take a …”

“Who would have thought it would be that simple,” Ron said.

“It might not work, so we’d better think about someplace else to store the guns,” Gary
said, “But in the meantime, let’s put in a bomb shelter.”

Gary and Ron knew just the guy to do the work for Gary. They got him on the phone
and he was glad to help out a couple of old friends, for a price. It took Tom about a
week to dig the hole, pour the slab, lay the block and put on the roof. Gary paid Tom
and told him that he would take it from there. The three old geezers built a frame and
filled it with potted houseplants. Then added a little potting soil to hide the pots. The en-

224
trance was small, about 2’ square and two men could easily lift the frame. One man
could do it in a pinch. Gary put 2 folding cots, a case of civilian MRE’s and 2 5-gallon
bottles of Arrowhead water in the bomb shelter. It was now time to go hunting again.

Buzz, zap. Buzz, zap. The two insulators were gone and the lines were down. They
drove to Santa Clarita and over to highway 126. An hour later it was buzz, zap, buzz,
zap and two more power lines went down. The three old coots continued to Santa Bar-
bara and Solvang to make their alibi tight. Gary bought Sharon a doll at the doll shop
and they headed home. They dumped the car at the trailer park and hid the rifles in one
of the shot up trailers. When they got home, the feds were there, searching. And, this
time they had ground-penetrating radar to boot.

“Help you guys?” Gary asked.

“Search warrant, Mr. Olsen,” the Marshal said, “Please stay out of the way. Gary went
to his office, got the cell phone, turned it on, called Ron and told him to leave the line
open, and put it in the linen cabinet. He then walked out and sat down on the patio to
watch. It took them a while to find the bomb shelter, but they found it. When it looked
like they were about ready to dynamite the thing, Gary showed them the entrance.

“What’s the shelter for Mr. Olsen?” the marshal asked.

“Storms, Gary said, “They don’t build many basements here in California, especially in
LA County.”

Dissatisfied, the Marshals continued their search, including the house. An hour later,
they gave up.

“Satisfied?” Gary asked.

“Where were you when we got here Mr. Olsen?” the marshal asked.

“Oh, Ron, Clarence and I made a trip to Solvang so I could buy my wife a doll as a
Christmas present,” Gary said, “Something wrong with that?”

“Let me see the doll,” the Marshal said.

Gary showed the doll to the Marshal and he just shook his head and left. Gary followed
him out the door.

“Hey, how about you put up a sign that says you searched my place?”

225
 Preparations – Chapter 44 – Decisions, Decisions

“I thought you were a goner for sure,” Ron said.

“Actually, I think I just got lucky,” Gary said. “They didn’t appear to have the latest
equipment. We’re going to have to move the guns. There is a stage over at the trailer
park. I looked, and it’s just a façade, so if we could build a door into the area under the
stage, that might be a good place to hide the guns and ammo.”

“What do you mean by façade?” Clarence asked.

“Maybe that’s the wrong word, pal,” Gary explained. “The stage is just a solid platform
built over the floor. Anyway, what do you guys think?”

“Let’s go look,” Ron suggested, “Might work and might not.”

They examined the stage and it was just what Gary had described. It was as good a
place as any and it wouldn’t be that far from the tract. Clarence walked around back of
the stage and found a trapdoor.

“There’s a door here, this might not be such a good idea,” Clarence said.

“Let me look,” Gary suggested. He shined a flashlight into the space under the stage.
“This will work just fine. We’ll move the stuff tonight.”

When they got home, Gary went to Sharon.

“Do you still have some of that black cloth?” he asked.

“What black cloth?” Sharon asked.

“You know the stuff that sort of absorbs light?” Gary got specific.

“Yes, why?” she asked.

“I want to borrow it. Where is our staple gun?” he asked.

That night, they got several people to help them and they emptied out the basement.
Everything went under the stage at Grecian Isles. Gary swept up some of the dust and
then hung the light absorbing black cloth. Finally, he blew the dust from his palm over
the area.

“Check it out,” Gary said.

Ron and then Clarence used their flashlights to look under the stage. You couldn’t tell
there were anything there, the dust looked undisturbed and the cloth made the huge

226
space seem to go on forever. They left the Barrett in the trailer for easy access and re-
turned home. This bomb shelter idea of Gary’s was eating at the other two and Clar-
ence announced that he was building a shelter, too. Ron said something like why not
and they decided to build one in Amy’s backyard while they were at it. Apparently Patti
saw the goings on because Chris was soon in the back yard every evening digging a
hole. He was too cheap to hire anyone; he was going to do it himself.

Thanksgiving Day, 24Nov05…

There had never been a satisfactory explanation of the downing of the 747, and con-
spiracy theories were rampant. CNN was running a special against the football games.
Ron and Clarence had gotten together to watch the games, but Gary was watching the
CNN special. By the time the Special was over, Gary felt that it had raised more ques-
tions than it had answered. The White House had never identified the hijackers for one
thing and it had been over 2 weeks. And, the controller who had been handling the flight
couldn’t be found. She had just plain vanished. CNN had been to her home, but it was
sitting empty. There was no sign of her, her husband or their two kids. Strange.

25Nov05…

“Wes, I can’t stand being cooped up in this house any longer,” Gertrude said, “It’s just
like being in prison.”

“Gert, it’s just too risky,” her husband answered.

“It’s your face that everyone knows Wes,” she replied, “I’m going to get Jim to drive me
up to the mall in Palmdale, I have to get out.”

He’d allowed his hair and beard to grow and bleached both. He didn’t look anything like
his photos. “We’ll all get out for a while,” Wes answered, “No one will recognize me.”

Sharon had dragged Gary to the AV Mall. His feet couldn’t take all of the walking, so he
was plunked down on a bench while she ran hither and yon spending their precious
money. Gary barely noticed the man and woman as they walked into the mall. He got
up to get a Sundae at the Dairy Queen and overheard the man say something to his
wife. There was something about the voice, but Gary couldn’t place it. Gary got the
large Hot Fudge Sundae and returned to his seat on the bench. About ½ way through
the Sundae, it occurred to Gary where he’d heard the voice. He threw the Sundae in the
trash and scurried to the Sheriff’s Department counter.

“Deputy, do you see that man and woman over there?” Gary asked excitedly.

The Deputy gave them the once over and said, “Yeah, so what?”

227
“That’s Wesley Clark and I want my $50 million,” Gary said.

“Wesley Clark is clean shaven, has dark hair and always wears a suit,” the Deputy said.

“Just go ask to see his ID, if I’m wrong, you can arrest me,” Gary insisted.

To make a long story short, the next thing you knew, Wesley and Gertrude Clark were
in handcuffs. When the entire furor died down, Gary asked the Deputy, “Was it him?”

“Yes it was,” the Deputy replied.

“Where’s my check?” Gary asked.

“What check?’ the Deputy asked back.

“My check for $50 million,” Gary said.

“Fill out this form,” the Deputy said, “The reward is $50 million for information leading to
the arrest AND CONVICTION of Mr. Clark. You’ll be paid if and when he is convicted.”

“Hey I’m 62, I might not live that long,” Gary said. “He’s arrested, how about half now
and half later?”

“No?” Gary said. “I’m going to the newspapers. By the time they get done blowing this
all out of proportion, you’ll be lucky to be walking a beat.”

CNN that night was a spectacle. They showed Clark and his wife in handcuffs. They
had an interview with Gary Olsen of the Palmdale Militia. Olsen was telling how since
Bush had shot down the 747 he and his friends had been subject to continual harass-
ment by the USMS. Olsen also said that it didn’t seem fair; he should get half the re-
ward now, because Clark had been arrested. With the American system of justice the
way it was these days, he’d have to live to 100 to get his reward.

26Nov05…

The reporters seemed to know no bounds. They were ringing his doorbell incessantly.
Finally Gary had had enough. He got his .32 and opened the door.

“All you folks get off my property,” Gary screamed, “Before I have to shoot one of you
for trespassing.”

The reporters backed up to the sidewalk and stopped. The sidewalk was public proper-
ty, they yelled back. Gary didn’t care and was about to let loose when 3 black Subur-
ban’s pulled up.

“Now what?” he thought.

228
“Mr. Olsen, would you put the gun down please, I need to talk to you,” the same Mar-
shal said.

“What do you want?” Gary snapped, “Going to go through the dirty laundry?”

Gary shoved the .32 into his back pocket and went into the house. The Marshal stood at
the door waiting to be allowed entry.

“Well, come in and shut the door behind you,” Gary snapped. “Fricking reporters. There
ought to be a law against them. What do you want?”

“Do you own anything besides those grubby jeans and holey golf shirt?” the Marshal
asked.

“What if I do?” Gary snapped, “What business is that of yours? My friends and family
saved the world and you’re harassing us.”

“Actually Mr. Olsen you only saved the country,” the Marshal grinned, “With a little help
from the Pep Boys, the US Air Force, the 7th Cavalry Regiment and units from North
Carolina.”

“You seem to be pretty well informed,” Gary said, “Got that from the file you didn’t show
me, huh?”

“What file?” the Marshal asked.

“The one that told you I was a diabetic,” Gary said, “There was nothing in the FBI file
you showed me but my old security clearances, gun permit applications and a letter of
commendation from the ATF agent in Davenport. There was nothing about my diabe-
tes.”

“I have orders to escort you and your two friends to Washington,” the Marshal said ig-
noring the comment.

“What, they got bigger jails in Washington?” Gary snapped.

“No, they have $50 million checks and medals in Washington, DC,” the Marshal said.

“I suppose you want to me shave, too,” Gary said.

When they finally arrived at LAX to be transported to the east coast, the other 46 mem-
bers of the Palmdale Militia were waiting for them. Before he could ask, the Marshal told
Gary that Marshals back in Iowa were escorting his sons to the airport and they would

229
meet them in Washington. They boarded the United Airlines 747 and took off for Wash-
ington. Gary spent the entire flight looking out the window trying to see the F-16 that
was going to shoot them down over West Virginia. When they arrived in Washington,
Derek was in dress uniform and Damon actually had a suit on. The Marshals must have
bought it for him, Gary thought.

The 51 Members of the Palmdale Militia were led to a conference room and offered
seats. Everyone was in uniform except Gary, Ron, Clarence and Damon. Finally, they
were led into another room where the media was set up. The President entered, gave a
short speech and began passing out Distinguished Service Medals to the men and
women in uniform. Next, he presented Presidential Medals of Freedom to Ron and
Clarence. It was finally Gary’s turn. “He’ll probably ask me if I want door number 1 or
door number 2,” Gary thought.

Bush presented Gary with the Presidential Medal of Freedom and a US Treasury check
for $50 million. During the photo session that followed, Gary finally had a chance to
meet Bush.

“Tell me Mr. President, Gary asked, “Did we win the War on Terror yet?”

“Look Olsen,” Bush said, “If it had been up to me, I’d have given you the booby prize.”

“Can I take my vote back?” Gary asked.

Gary sat on the other side of the plane on the way back to California, still looking for the
F-16.

29Nov05…

Enough of the clowning around; Gary had $25 million and he wanted to spend it (did
you forget the 40% US tax and the 9% California tax?). But when Sharon he and sat
down to talk about it, they couldn’t think of one thing that they needed that they didn’t
already have. $25 million wouldn’t get Gary his health back; they had a nice home and a
small but steady income. They’d pay off the house and stick the rest of the money away
for a rainy day. The price of gold was down and at $310 per ounce they could buy about
5,530 pounds (advp) of gold. Or, 201 and a fraction of the Fort Knox sized gold ingots
(400 troy ounces each). Well make it 200 and keep a few dollars of idle cash around,
like maybe $200,000. Heck, Gary could pave the floor of the basement with gold bricks,
lay down a plywood floor and no one would be the wiser. And the taxes were more like
48.6%, so they’d have enough to pay off the house and keep about $750k around. De-
cisions, decisions.

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 Preparations – Chapter 45 – The Building Project

30Nov05…

Gary answered the door, pistol in hand. He was going to shoot that reporter.

“Don’t shoot Gar-Bear,” Ron laughed, “I don’t work for CNN.”

“Good thing, I was going to shoot the next reporter who rang the doorbell,” Gary said.

“Well, what do you expect, you’re rich and famous,” Ron said.

“How about ½ rich and infamous,” Gary joked. “Taxes are going to eat up half the mon-
ey.”

“You should have moved to Nevada, they don’t have income tax,” Ron said.

“Good idea, but it’s a little late now,” Gary said. “What the hell, it’s found money. I never
did recognize him, but I knew the voice. Anyway, we’re going to pay off the house and
buy some gold.”

“You’re going to keep a little cash around, right?” Ron asked.

“Some loose change, partner, maybe ¾ million or so,” Gary replied.

“Loose change my butt,” Ron said.

“What’s up besides my bank account?” Gary asked, “It’s pretty early in the morning for
you to be out and about.”

“Oh, Clark tried to escape last night and they shot him,” Ron said.

“Likely story Ron, someone probably had to push him out of the door,” Gary comment-
ed.

“Either way, he’s dead, Gar-Bear,” Ron said.

“I wondered why they were so anxious to give up the whole $50 million,” Gary observed.

“I had a couple of minutes to visit with Derek before we came back Ron,” Gary reported,
“He sounds worried again.”

“What now?” Ron asked.

“He didn’t say, so either he didn’t know or he wasn’t willing to share,” Gary answered.
“Said something about Damon and him moving to California permanently. And, before

231
you ask, he isn’t interested in the money. Damon can get a job working for any insula-
tion company and Derek is a pretty good parts man, so he won’t have any trouble find-
ing a job.”

“No one ever said what he did,” Ron noted.

“Works in the distribution warehouse for an auto parts chain,” Gary told Ron.

“You’re right, he won’t have any trouble finding a job,” Ron agreed, “So when are they
coming?”

“Didn’t say, but soon I hope,” Gary replied.

“Why soon?” Ron asked, puzzled.

“I don’t know and I wished that I did, pal,” Gary answered softly. “Ask yourself some-
thing, who hijacked that plane? Why did Bush make the USA Patriot Act more invasive?
Why did he add in the Assault Weapons Ban? Especially the AWB, Ron, hell, he was
against it.”

“Those are good questions Gary,” Ron admitted, “I don’t have any answers though.”

“How big a propane tank could we install in that big back yard you have?” Gary asked.

“It depends Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “But probably a 30,000 gallon tank, why?”

“I’ll tell you what, you talk to your friends at AmeriGas and find out,” Gary suggested.
“Put in the biggest tank you can and I’ll pay for it.”

“I think you’re nuts, as usual, but ok,” Ron said, “Anything else?”

“Yeah, Go around to everyone’s home and find out what kind of hot water heaters, dry-
ers and stoves they have,” Gary said, “Most of them probably still have the original
heaters and stoves, but check. Then, go to a parts house somewhere and get propane
jets for all of those appliances. I’m going to buy a great big generator and put it in Amy’s
back yard. On second thought have AmeriGas put a great big propane tank in Amy’s
back yard too.”

“That’s a lot of money Gar-Bear,” Ron said.

“It’s blood money Ron, Wesley Clark’s blood,” Gary snapped, “And I don’t want any part
of it. I don’t care how evil the man was, he deserved a fair trial before they shot him.”

“Well ok. I’ll get Clarence to get the stove and heater information and I’ll talk to Ameri-

232
Gas,” Ron said, “How are you going to hook that generator in to all of the houses?”

“Hell, I don’t know, big extension cords? Gary laughed, “We’ll figure something out, I’ll
hire the electrician that wired this whole housing tract. He’ll know what to do.”

Gary looked up Onan generators, but they weren’t big enough. He followed a link to
cumminspower.com and found a 1.7 mw unit that ran on propane (C1700 N6). He fig-
ured that anything that ran on propane could be made to run on natural gas. There were
39 houses in the tract. Hell, figure 39 houses at 100 amps each. He needed 2 units, and
he hoped they took gold. Turned out he had enough cash, but the generators that large
were 3 phase. So, he bought Onan RS 30000s for each home without a generator. Ron
ordered 2 60,000-gallon propane tanks. At 1.83 per gallon the propane alone would
have cost over $200k retail, but at that volume they gave Gary wholesale prices, saving
him a bunch. Dick put an electrically controlled cutoff valve into the natural gas line
where it fed into the housing tract and ran a line from the gasifier that Ron had on the
tank on his property to tie into the gas system. He ran a second line from the gasifier to
the lot where the other tank and gasifier were and they put in a remote controlled valve
to switch between the two propane lines.

The contractor who originally wired the housing tract wired the generators into the elec-
trical system. He reran the tract power feeds to the new transfer switches. Since the
control units for the Cummins generators could be computer controlled, Gary popped for
a cheap computer to control the generators and, the remote gas cutoff. There was a
sense of urgency because Gary had finally carefully read the text of USA Patriot Act II.
If Gary read it right, they would have better off under the late General Clark. Ron picked
up the extra jets and kept them in the OP.

Finally, by consent of the entire group of homeowners, they converted Moon Shadows
to a gated community. Two homeowners said they didn’t want to live in any survivalist
village and Gary bought them out. Since the boys were on the way to California, Sharon
suggested that they just give Amy the house she lived in and each of the boys one of
those homes. Then someone else put his home on the market and Gary walked over
and offered the guy cash for the house. They moved Lorrie and David in.

That blood money was coming in pretty handy after all. There was only one more thing
to do, reassemble the Palmdale Militia. Gary bought the trailer park from the owner at a
song because it was empty and half the trailers were shot up. (I wonder who did that?)
Nobody claimed the trailers, so Gary slapped a lien of all of them for back rent and
forced a Sheriff’s sale. Then, he moved the Palmdale Militia into the trailer park and told
them their lots and trailers were rent free except for a prorated share of the water and
the property taxes. But wait, there’s more. On the corner of Ave R and 45th street East,
there was a vacant lot. Gary got a realtor to track down the owner and bought it for
cash.

And, all the while gold prices were climbing like a skyrocket. Gary sold $25 million in
gold when it hit $425 an ounce and still had over 25% of his gold left. He got AmeriGas

233
to put in a 100,000-gallon tank on the vacant lot and added more of the Cummins gen-
erators. While all of this was going on, they walled in the lot and put in another of those
heavy-duty gates like the one they had installed on the Moon Shadows entrance. They
surveyed the trailer park and bought jets for all of the hot water heaters and furnaces.
Finally, they installed a water tower and a well on the lot and plumbed it into the water
supplies for the tract and the trailer park, again with electrically controlled remote control
switches. Everything was completed on Valentine’s Day, 2006.

During subsequent testing of the computer controlled systems, the computer Gary had
bought to run it crashed. That did it! Gary bought a server system and a computer for
every home in the tract and the trailer park from Dell. Now, a lot of people swear by Dell
and a lot of people swear AT Dell, but Gary got them to agree in writing to supply sup-
port from ONLY Texas and Florida, in real English. Just to make sure the system actual-
ly worked, Gary hired Dell to install the 1-gigabit system and network and make it work.
Installation only took 2 weeks, but getting it to run took a month. Finally, he added a T-1
line, router and monster firewall to the server. And just think, this was all possible be-
cause Gary wanted a hot fudge Sundae from Dairy Queen in the mall (with nuts).

“Well Gar-Bear, are you broke yet?” Ron asked.

“With gold at $450 an ounce?” Gary laughed, “Hell no. I still have 50 ingots partner. I
think they’re worth about $9 million. And, I’ve got enough cash left to open a casino.
What say we buy our own Hummers and 5-ton trucks?”

“I think that you’ve been spending money like a drunken sailor,” Ron said.

“I haven’t had so much fun in my life Ron,” Gary smiled. “Hell, all of my kids have their
own homes free and clear, we have our own private militia and we have gas, electricity
and water. And just think, this was all possible because I wanted a hot fudge Sundae
from Dairy Queen.”

“Ok, we’ll buy the vehicles,” Ron said, “Anything else you want?”

“Yep. New web gear from Blackhawk, Camelback hydration systems, and the best
sights we can get for our weapons,” Gary said, “Do you need to write this down?”

“Nope,” Ron said, “Keep going. However, a lot of what you want is LEO or military only.”

“I don’t care, make it happen, even if you have to use bribes,” Gary said. “I want those
Magnum Universal Night Sights on our Super Match and other sniper rifles.”

“I may not have time,” Ron said, “Kevin’s at it again.”

“Please just move him to one of those empty trailers Ron, I need you on this,” Gary

234
said.

“Are you telling me or asking me?” Ron asked sharply.

“Asking, my friend,” Gary replied, “It’s none of my business, I know that. But I thought if
Kevin had his own place, rent free, you wouldn’t have to worry about him and he’d only
be a block away.”

“You misunderstood my point, but that’s ok,” Ron laughed, “Hell yes I’ll move him and
pay rent if you want.”

“Not necessary, buddy,” Gary smiled, “Look, I read the new AWB portion of USA Patriot
Act II very carefully. Bush screwed up. He didn’t make the .50BMG ammo illegal. So, I
want some more of the Hornady 750gr A-MAX Match ammo. But, use a cutout even
though it’s legal; and don’t give him your real name.”

“Is a cutout legal?” Ron asked.

“Not sure, that’s why I said don’t use your name,” Gary replied.

“Anything else?” Ron asked.

“Yeah, the M-24 SWS is still legal because it’s a bolt action so get 6 more,” Gary re-
plied.

“I guess I’m going to need paper and pencil after all,” Ron grinned.

“I wrote it all down for you Chief,” Gary said, “And here, take this money, everything is
cash only.”

“She might have some of this stuff,” Ron said.

“No way Jose,” Gary said, “She over charged me just a little too much, so get it else-
where.”

“What is this crap,” Ron said looking at the list, “Winchester rifles and Ruger Vaqueros?”

“You missed the cowboy hats,” Gary winked, “The Three Amigos ride again.”

“What no horses?” Ron asked.

“I’m having Clarence get the horses’ pal,” Gary replied, “Told him to find me one named
Salina.”

“You don’t even like horses,” Ron shook his head.

235
“I know, but it makes everyone laugh when I try to ride one,” Gary winced.

236
 Preparations – Chapter 46 – And Other Assorted Things

23Mar06…

It was Gary’s birthday and he was 63 on this day. They had run out of things to spend
money on and Ron had acquired every single item on Gary list. Clarence had come up
with 6 horses; including one he renamed Salina for Gary’s benefit. Gary had bought the
land between the housing tract and 47th street East and fenced it in. They knocked a
hole in the block wall at the east end of Moonraker Road for access to the new land.
Gary had gotten a semi-truckload of Alfalfa from the rancher on Avenue M and had a
carpenter build a chicken coop. They had 2 milk cows and 2 750# feeder cattle. When
they ran out of space to store the food Patti and Sharon were buying by the carload
from Costco and Sam’s Club, Gary just built another shed in the back yard. Gary was
bound and determined to get rid of what he was calling the blood money, but the price
of gold had gone up about $5 a day for 5 weeks in a row. The price now stood at $550
an ounce and Gary’s 50 ingots were worth $11 million.

The gold price was rising as fast as the economy was falling. The coup had a bad effect
on the market and when Bush came back in, it didn’t recover. Actually it was a lot worse
and Lou Dobbs’s replacement was sounding more like a doomsayer than a reporter.
Bush was trying to feed the economy by building the Army back up to 15 Divisions, but
recruiting had fallen off sharply. Damon had gotten a job with an insulation company
and by some miracle still had it. Derek had gone to work down the street at Chief Auto
parts and was making a lot more than he ever made in Iowa. The fact that the boys only
had to pay property taxes and utilities was letting Gary’s boys get back on their feet.
Gary had wired Derek enough money for the move for both boys and enough for Derek
to stop in Missouri and buy 4 cases of Kools 100s.

On April 17th, the NYSE fell so badly that the circuit breakers kicked in and trading was
suspended for an hour. Thirty minutes after trading resumed, they kicked for two hours.
Thirty minutes after trading resumed again, the exchange was forced to close because
the market had dropped 30%. The next day it started all over again, but the Governors
of the NYSE closed the market when the stock had fallen only 20%. On the third day,
the market closed after the stock had fallen only 10%. The NYSE failed to open the rest
of the week. So did the American Stock Exchange and NASDAQ. Meanwhile the price
of gold on the London market soared to a record high of $1,250 (US) an ounce. The col-
lapse of the market could not have occurred at a more fortunate time for Gary. With
nothing left to buy, he had taken his remaining cash, all $11 million, on his birthday and
purchased gold at $550 an ounce. He now had 100 bars of gold worth $1,250 an ounce.
($50 million)

It was worse than October 29, 1929. And, the effect was felt worldwide. It was the be-
ginning of a depression. The President and his economic advisers tried to reassure the
American people. Bush didn’t impress anyone and you could hardly blame the people.

237
Andrew Johnson had been impeached for firing the Secretary of War, but not convicted.
In 1998, as a result of issues surrounding personal indiscretions with a young woman
White House intern, Clinton was the second US president to be impeached by the
House of Representatives, but not convicted. Now, the House was blaming Dubya for
the rules made by the Board of Governors of the NYSE and it looked like they might just
impeach him, too. The vote to impeach failed by a single vote, but the damage was
done. The problem, of course, was the media. CNN had Bush tried and convicted be-
fore the House even voted. After the vote, they began to claim that there were impropri-
eties in the voting.

“Ronald, I knew I should have shot some of those SOB’s from CNN,” Gary said storm-
ing into the OP.

“Good morning to you too Gar-Bear,” Ron replied.

“Hi Clarence, how are you today?” Gary said.

“Not so good Gary, my pension was all tied up in the stock market, you know,” Clarence
replied grimly.

“I know what you mean, Clarence,” Gary said, “My Iowa bank sold out all of the stocks
on Tuesday, but my trust went down about 35% in value.”

“Maybe so,” Clarence said, “But I don’t have no basement full of gold.”

“Well hell, stop by on the way home and I’ll give a bar of gold,” Gary said, “You can’t eat
gold and the good Lord knows that I have enough to go around.”

“You don’t understand Gary, I had over $100,000 in my retirement account,” Clarence
said.

“Well, then I’ll only give you 1/5 of a bar of gold if it will make you feel better, Clarence.

“Just how much is a bar of gold worth, Gary?” Clarence asked his eyes rather large.

“Last time I looked, $500,000 my friend,” Gary said, “But if you only want $100,000, I
guess I could cut one up for you.”

“I wouldn’t want to cause you any extra work Gary,” Clarence said, “One bar will be just
fine.”

“Hey, what about me?” Ron asked.

“Oh, good morning Ron,” Gary laughed, “I suppose you want a bar of gold too.”

“Hell yeah, I can wash the blood off,” Ron said.

238
“A, million here, a million there, pretty soon you’re talking about real money guys,” Gary
shook his head.

“Did you think that up all on your own?” Ron asked.

“No. Everett Dirksen said it,” Gary said, “Except he said billion, not million. Come on;
let’s go get those gold bars. Only take a piece of advice, don’t take dollars for it. Get
gold and silver Eagles and pre-65 silver.”

“You’re not serious are you?” Clarence asked.

“Clarence, I got $50 million for turning Clark in, Gary started to lecture, “The government
took half. I bought 200 bars of gold at $310 ($24,800,000), sold 150 at $425
($25,500,000), bought 50 more at $550 $11,000,000) and it’s now worth $1,250
($50,000,000). The more I spend, the more I get. Hell yes I’m serious.”

“You’re acting like you’re the richest man in the world,” Clarence observed.

“I just may be partner,” Gary said, “Bill Gates had most of his money tied up in Microsoft
stock.”

Things were starting to turn ugly around the country, so they dug out the guns and am-
mo from under the stage and took those new 5-ton trucks down to the storage facility
and emptied out the locker.

“We don’t have enough beef,” Ron announced.

“We have two steers and two cows,” Gary recalled.

“Yeah and I like pork chops,” Clarence added.

“You’re the livestock expert, Clarence,” Gary said, “Go buy some steers, cows, a bull, a
boar and some sows. By the way, why doesn’t that horse answer to Salina?”

“I don’t know, Gary,” Clarence replied, “Maybe she’s deaf in her right ear, too.”

Clarence got two pregnant sows and a boar. That meant they needed a hog house so
they bought a prefabricated wood building and got some of the neighbors to help erect
it. It never got that cold in Palmdale, so they just put up a horse port for the horses in
case of rain or snow. One day the wind shifted and Clarence caught a whiff of the hog
manure. He went to talk to Gary about it.

“Gary, what’s that awful smell?” Clarence asked.

239
“You mean the hog crap?” Gary asked. “My Dad used to call that the smell of money.”

“Used to tell stories too,” Gary continued, “Like the one about the guy who died in the
round barn.”

“What did he die from?” Clarence fell for it.

“He drowned, Clarence, trying to find a corner to pee in,” Gary said straight faced.

“You really think we’re going to need these guns?” Clarence got a little more serious.

“I hope not buddy,” Gary replied, “But you never know, do you? I watched some of
those old films on the History Channel; the 1930’s were pretty tough all over the world,
but especially in the US. Hitler revived the Germany economy by building that massive
war machine of his. You know, he would have won the Second World War if he hadn’t
been such a nut. But, he just had to go and invade Russia and the rest is history, so
they say.”

“Bush seems to be trying to do the same thing, but he can’t get no volunteers,” Clarence
observed.

“That was then Clarence,” Gary replied ruefully, “We headed for a depression and he’ll
get more volunteers than he can use.”

“Say he does, so what?” Clarence asked.

“He’ll probably start a war somewhere to jump start the economy,” Gary suggested.

“Where?” Clarence asked.

“I would have said Mexico,” Gary prognosticated, “But according to CNN, there’s more
Mexicans moving south than north.”

“Aw, he wouldn’t really start a war,” Clarence insisted.

“He wouldn’t huh?” Gary asked. “Ever hear of the War on Terror? Afghanistan and Iraq
didn’t invade the US.”

“But they knocked down the World Trade Center on 9/11,” Clarence protested.

“Who hijacked that 747 full of Veteran’s, Clarence?” Gary asked.

“Al Qaeda, maybe?” Clarence offered.

“If it would have been al Qaeda, Bush would been all over the news saying, ‘See, I told

240
you so’,” Gary noted. “I haven’t heard one word about who was responsible.”

“Are you saying Bush was behind it?” Clarence asked. “I don’t believe that for one mi-
nute.”

“Clarence, that’s the problem, I don’t know who was behind it,” Gary said. “And, the me-
dia isn’t speculating either. Did you ever know the media not to speculate on every-
thing?”

“Can’t say so,” Clarence admitted. “I have to go, Gary, talk to you later.”

“Ciao,” Gary said. Gary walked down to Ron’s.

“Howdy partner,” Ron greeted him.

“Hey Ron how are you feeling?” Gary asked.

“I’ll get by,” Ron said, “What’s up?”

“Clarence was over and we got to talking,” Gary reported.

“What about?” Ron inquired.

“Lots of things,” Gary said, “But nothing in particular. I was thinking; we got that T-1 line
right?”

“Yeah what about it?” Ron asked.

“Let’s put in a 2 more T-1 lines and our own phone equipment,” Gary suggested.

“What the hell for?” Ron asked, “You still trying to get rid of the blood money?”

“No, not at all,” Gary said, “But it would tighten up our security a bunch.”

“Where are you going to put this phone system?” Ron wanted to know.

“How about Kevin’s bedroom,” Gary smiled, “That way the kid can’t move back in on
you.”

“All right, Gar-Bear,” Ron grinned, “Now you’re talking.”

The three old geezers hired a contractor and he installed the phone equipment in Kev-
in’s bedroom. Even Linda seemed to like the idea. It was a chore rerouting all of the
phone lines down to Ron’s house, but the job was done the Friday before Memorial Day
2006. They incorporated the Homeowner’s Association, just in case. And, Gary ordered
up a bunch of sackrete, mortar and concrete blocks and stored them near the water

241
tower, right next to the truckload of barbed wire.

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 Preparations – Chapter 47 – Who’s Crazy?

Saturday, 24Jun06…

Linda had invited Lucy and Sharon down for coffee. Apparently, she had something on
her mind.

“Sharon, is Gary ok?” Linda asked.

“What do you mean ok?” Sharon said.

“You know, he’s turned this whole housing tract into almost a fortress,” Linda explained.

“I’m not so sure Gary has been ok for a long time, Linda,” Sharon replied. “When they
shot Wesley Clark, he got to feeling real guilty. You’ve heard him ranting and raving
about the Constitution several times. That was his best subject in Law School and he’s
been a nut about the Constitution since before I ever met him.”

“I didn’t know Gary was a lawyer,” Lucy said.

“He’s not,” Sharon explained. “Law School gave him ulcers and he dropped out. Some-
times he gets to talking about how every lawyer in the country has nothing but situation-
al ethics.”

“What are situational ethics?” Lucy asked.

“That’s where you change your ethics to suit the situation,” Sharon said.

“Oh, I see what you mean,” Lucy said. “Clarence says that Gary has some pretty hard
and fast ideas about things.”

“Lucy, you don’t know the half of it,” Sharon smiled. “He gets mad if I don’t fold his jock-
eys in a certain way. He told me that his mother used to iron his t-shirts and jockeys.”

“Do you?” Linda asked.

“Are you kidding?” Sharon asked. “I wait until he’s down to his last t-shirt and pair of
shorts before I do laundry. It positively drives him nuts.”

“Isn’t that a little risky?” Lucy asked.

“Gary’s mostly bark, unless you really get him angry,” Sharon explained. “He’s got what
they call a German temper. He just bottles it up, but when he explodes, watch out.”

“That explains a lot,” Linda said. “Ron is just the opposite.”

243
“I’ve only seen Clarence mad a couple of times in 30 years,” Lucy said.

“Well, you take that German temper and his natural passive-aggressive personality and
Gary is a time bomb, just going tick, tick, tick,” Sharon said.

“How’s the job working out Derek?’ Gary asked.

“Ok Dad, but I wish I was back in Iowa,” Derek replied.

“What’s Iowa got that they don’t have 2 of in California?” Gary inquired.

“Peace, solitude and my Abrams tank,” Derek said.

“I can’t do anything about the peace and solitude, son,” Gary said, “But I’ll buy you an
Abrams tank if you really want one.”

“Sure Dad, you’re just going to run down to White’s Surplus and buy two because
they’re on sale right?” Derek kidded.

“No, I was thinking about paying someone to steal one for you,” Gary explained. “What
is your favorite model, the M1A2SEP?”

“You’re crazy Dad,” Derek said.

“That’s what everyone keeps telling me Derek,” Gary laughed, “But I just ignore them.
Do you want that in Olive Drab or Desert Camo?”

“Desert Camo,” Derek replied, certain that Gary was just clowning around. “And, be
sure to get extra tracks, engine parts and lots of that 120mm ammo while you’re at it.”

You’ve heard the expression, ‘take two, they’re small’ right? Gary went over to the trailer
park and announced he had a bar of gold for anyone who could deliver 2 Abrams
M1A2SEP tanks with spare tracks, engine parts and 1,000 rounds of ammo. Oh, and
they had to have a Desert Camo paint job, too. Most of the Palmdale Militia thought
Gary was nuts. (Join the club, folks.) But Roy, Jim, Doc, Becky and a couple of the oth-
ers thought it was a good idea.

Saturday, 01Jul06…

“We’ll take that bar of gold Gary,” Roy said.

“You actually got 2 Abrams?” Gary asked. “How? Where?”

“Can’t say,” Roy smiled, “But it was mighty hot up near Barstow.”

244
“And the spare parts and ammo?” Gary asked.

“Everything you wanted,” Roy said. “We even picked up some camo netting to cover the
things.”

“Where are they?” Gary asked.

“Down by the water tower next to the barbed wire and concrete blocks,” Roy replied,
“What’s that stuff for?”

“I had this idea,” Gary explained. “I figured that if TSHTF, we could put a block wall from
the wall on the lot to the trailer park wall across 45th street on the north and the south.
I’ll be down in a minute to check out those tanks and give you your gold.”

“We’ll be waiting,” Roy said.

“With gold up to $1,400 an ounce,” Gary thought, “I’ll bet you’ll be waiting.”

Gary walked over to Derek’s and told Derek he needed his help delivering a gold bar.
They went back to the house, got a gold bar and Derek lugged the bar down to the lot.

“Now, check out under those camo nets over there,” Gary said, “And if what you find
meets with your approval, give Roy that gold bar.”

Derek laid the gold bar down and lifted the net. “DAD!” he hollered.

“I guess they’re ok Roy, and thanks,” Gary said.

Roy picked up the gold bar and the 6 of them headed back to the trailer park.

“Somebody is going to lock you up and throw away the key,” Derek announced.

“Not if I see them coming,” Gary said. “You have 2 tanks, 1,000 rounds of ammo and
spare parts. Happy birthday.”

“My birthday was in March, Dad,” Derek said.

“Well, happy 4th of July,” Gary said, “Always with the fricking details.”

Lorrie’s birthday was July 5th and Sharon suggested that they have a barbeque on the
4th of July and celebrate Independence Day and Lorrie’s birthday at the same time.
Gary complained that he hated barbeque, but changed his tune when Sharon said that
Ron would be doing the cooking. Lorrie was going to be 39 and that sort of made Sha-

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ron feel old, if you know what I mean.

Tuesday, 04Jul06…

One of the advantages of a gated housing tract was that you could lock the gate and
have a party right in the street. Ron and Clarence had invited the entire Palmdale Militia
to the party and somewhere in the process it had turned into a beer bust and barbeque.
It was just like every other 4th of July at Moon Shadows, but this time, there were about
200-300 people. A stereo was set up playing Gary’s collection of Time/Life ‘50’s and
‘60’s music. There was the usual volleyball game on Dick’s lawn and several people
had bought fireworks for later in the evening. Thankfully, the wind was out of the west.
The big meal was going to be served around 4pm and Gary, Clarence and Ron were
just sitting there watching Ron almost burn the meat. Around 3 o’clock, Gary went into
the house for some more lemonade. Someone had left the TV on, tuned to the Com-
munist News Network (CNN).

…bombing on the Mall in Washington. The announcer said. Gary forgot all about the
barbeque and beer bust and sat down and turned the volume up. Ron came looking for
Gary around 4pm but Gary just waived him into silence. CNN was saying that no one
had claimed responsibility for the bombing. The President was expected to make an
announcement later from his ranch in Crawford, Texas. The death toll was high, but not
staggering and a lot of people had been injured in the series of blasts. Gary turned the
TV off and said, “Let’s eat.”

“Aren’t you going to listen to the President’s speech?” Ron asked.

“What for?” Gary asked, “So I can hear him say that the FBI is investigating and they
will bring whoever did it to swift retribution? If you believe that, I’ve got some oceanfront
property in Arizona.”

“George Strait, 1987,” Ron said.

“Ron, I’m not in the mood, ok?” Gary said, “Let’s eat.”

“Sheesh,” Ron said, “What’s got you in an uproar?”

“It’s starting,” Gary said.

“What’s starting?” Ron asked.

“TEOCAWKI,” Gary said, “Come on, I’m hungry.”

“What’s TEOCAWKI mean?” Ron asked.

“The End Of Civilization As We Know It,” Gary answered.

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“Damn, that happened on Valentine’s Day last year,” Ron said, “This is just more of the
SOS.”

“What’s SOS?” Gary asked.

“Same Old Crap,” Ron said, “Man you are out of touch; you know that?”

Gary had quit listening. He was thinking how Wesley Clark had started the ball rolling
downhill and Dubya had come along and given it a kick. Unlikely? Maybe, but the Presi-
dent hadn’t been the same since Clark had locked him up for 2 months. And as hard as
Gary tried to get rid of the blood money, he was now up to $55+ million in gold. The
Scotch in him wouldn’t let him just give the gold away, and he couldn’t seem to spend it
fast enough. I wouldn’t mind having those problems, would you?

Ron was busy filling in everyone on what was happening. Gary filled his plate and sat
down to eat.

“Dad, do you want me to fire the tanks up?” Derek asked.

“Nope, nobody knows we have them and I’d like to keep it that way,” Gary said.

“All of a sudden you’re taking a low profile?” Derek snorted.

“You sound like the Palmdale City Council,” Gary replied. “They told me I couldn’t put up
that water tower.”

“Yes, and…” Derek asked.

“I told them screw you if they can’t take a joke,” Gary answered.

“What did they say?” Derek asked.

“They sued me and tried to get an injunction,” Gary explained.

“AND…” Derek asked again.

“You see a water tower over there, right?” Gary said.

“Yes, so what?” Derek said.

“I hired me a fancy lawyer and the case will drag on until I’m dead,” Gary said. “After
that, I won’t care. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 48 – Wishing and Hoping

04Jul06…

Wishing and hoping and

thinking and praying,
planning and dreaming
each night of his charms
that won’t get you into his arms,
so if you’re looking to find love
you can share, all you gotta do,
is hold him and kiss him, and love him
and show him that you care

Show him that you care just for him,

do the things that he likes to do,
wear your hair just for him,
cause you won’t get him, thinking and a praying
wishing and a hoping

Just wishing and hoping

and thinking and praying
and planning and dreaming
his kisses will start...
that won’t get you into his heart...
so if your thinking how great true love is
all you gotta do is...

Hold him and kiss him and squeeze him and love him
just do it and
after you do, you will be his

Show him that you care just for him,

do the things that he likes to do,
wear your hair just for him,
cause you won’t get him
thinking and a praying
wishing an a hoping

Just wishing and hoping and thinking and praying

planning and dreaming
his kisses will start...
that won’t get you into his heart
so if your thinking how great true love is
all you gotta do.....

248
Is hold him and kiss him
and squeeze him and love him
just do it and after you do
you will be his....
you will be his.....
you..will..be..his........

Gary was wishing and hoping that the nightmare would just go away. He missed the old
music, especially the Dionne Warrick/Dusty Springfield tune. “Wish in one hand and spit
in the other,” he thought. Well, first they executed Clark before the trial. Then the 747
had been shot down. Now, a bomb of unclaimed origin had gone up on the Mall in the
Capital.

Maybe he was crazy, but it paid to be prepared. It was a lot more fun getting prepared
when they didn’t have any money, too. Every single thing they got had been a tradeoff.
Now, He had just done things like telling Ron and Clarence to get prescriptions for a 3-
year supply of meds and paid cash. No more physicians’ samples to deal with. This was
positively un-fun. No more struggling with the 2,000-gallon propane tanks and the
3,000-gallon water tanks either. They still had them, but the water tower held 300,000-
gallons of water and the propane tanks had 220,000 gallons of propane. By the time
they got to their reserves…

“US Marshal, open the gate,” the man in the suit said.

Gary was on his way over to the trailer park when he’d pulled up. Well, if it wasn’t his
old friend, ‘make you pee your pants’.

“What do you want now?” Gary said, “The water tower is local jurisdiction, not federal;
and I hid the guns someplace else.”

“Would you let me in please?” the Marshal said.

“Make that pretty please with sugar on it,” Gary smirked.

“All Right Darn It, Pretty Please With Sugar On It!” the Marshal almost pleaded.

Gary motioned for them to open the gate a crack and started to walk back to the house.
The Marshal rushed to catch up with him, which wasn’t hard, considering.

“I said, what do you want now Marshal,” Gary said without looking back.

“I brought your other file as a show of good faith,” the Marshal said loudly to make cer-
tain Gary heard.

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Gary stopped and then slowly turned around. “You must want something pretty bad if
you’re willing to give up that file Marshal,” Gary said.

“I do Mr. Olsen. I need somewhere to hide,” the Marshal said.

“From who or what?” Gary asked, interested.

“It’s a long story,” the Marshal said.

“Well, I seem to have a lot of free time lately, so come up to our office and you can ex-
plain it to Ron, Clarence and me at the same time,” Gary said. “You remember Ron and
Clarence, right Marshal, they’re the other two guys your storm troopers arrested for
questioning and then didn’t question.”

“I remember,” the Marshal said.

They went into Ron’s home and to the second floor. Clarence and Ron were sitting
there half amused and more than a little amazed.

“I told you guys they had a second file on me,” Gary said waiving the file in the air.

“What’s in it?” Ron asked.

“I have no idea, except maybe my medical history, but we’ll look at it later,” Gary said,
“The Marshal here is looking for somewhere to hide.”

“Do tell,” Ron said.

“You can start off by telling us your name Marshal,” Gary said.

“Marshall Thomas, Mr. Olsen,” the man said.

“I know you’re a Marshal, but is Thomas your first name or last name?” Gary said.

“My first name is Marshall with two ‘L’s’ and my last name is Thomas,” Marshal replied.

“A Marshal named Marshall,” Gary said, “Never mind, I won’t go there. So what’s the
story Marshal?”

“I don’t know if you know it, but there’s been a nearly complete media blackout for some
time,” Marshall said.

“Go on,” Gary said.

“The CIA was behind the hijacking of that 747,” Marshall said.

250
“There was a lot of speculation about that on one of the forums I visit,” Gary said.

“Frugal Squirrel’s?” Marshall said. “I read all of it and they were right.”

“What about Clark?” Gary asked.

“Shot him then shoved him out the door,” Marshall replied.

“And yesterday’s bombing on the Mall in DC?” Gary pressed.

“Another Company project,” Marshall said.

“And, where does our old pal Dubya fit into the whole scenario?” Gary asked.

“The DCI is the head of the Agency, but he only takes orders from one man,” Marshall
replied.

“What’s next on the agenda?” Ron asked.

“Have you read USA Patriot Act II closely?” Marshall asked.

“I went over it with a fine toothed comb,” Gary said, “They screwed up and didn’t ban
.50 cal ammo.”

“You could have purchased directly, you know Ron,” Marshall said, “You didn’t need to
use a straw man.”

“Get back to the point,” Gary said.

“The point is that you can’t do anything that some federal agency doesn’t know about,”
Marshall said. “The 4th Amendment is worthless, they can do a no knock search without
a warrant and they’ve even computerized library records.”

“I thought Congress made a stink about that 2 years ago,” Gary said.

“They did, but USA Patriot Act II restored everything Congress cut out and eliminated
the Sunset clauses. It also gave the government more power,” Marshall said. “Like the
Assault Weapons Ban. Bush said if Congress renewed the ban that he’d sign it, re-
member?”

“Ron asked you what’s next on the agenda, Marshal,” Gary said, “Please answer the
question.”

“I would if I could, but I don’t know,” Marshall said.

“What brings you here?” Gary asked.

251
“You guys have a lot of guns, 2 tanks, 2 Mk-19’s, 2 Ma Deuces, 4 truckloads of muni-
tions not counting the stuff you stole from Walmart, propane, water, generators and a
shelter I can hide in,” Marshall said.

“Is there anything you don’t know about us?” Gary asked.

“Not much, but it’s all in your file and I destroyed the only other copy,” Marshall said.

“What are you running from?” Gary asked.

“FEMA is going to raid this place tomorrow night and lay the blame on my doorstep,”
Marshall said. “They’re going to say I had a grudge against you guys because you got
me in trouble for arresting you and not questioning you.”

“We didn’t get you in trouble,” Clarence protested.

“I couldn’t get that file Clarence,” Marshall said, “But it is a pretty elaborate ruse.”

“So, when is this big attack supposed to take place?” Ron asked.

“0400 tomorrow morning,” Marshall said.

“Are they coming straight up from LA or are they assembling somewhere in the area?”
Gary asked.

“They’re already here,” Marshal said. “Camped out big as you please in the Mall parking
lot.”

“In front of Gottschalk’s?” Gary asked.

“Yes, why?” Marshall asked.

“Oh nothing really,” Gary smiled. “We have a little experience with that parking lot.”

“There are a lot of them,” Marshall said, “Probably over 100.”

“Ok, you know where the shelter is and how to get into it, right?” Gary asked.

“Does that mean I can stay?” Marshall asked.

“For now,” Gary replied.

“Hey about that other thing, I am very, very sorry,” Marshall said.

After Marshall had been taken to the shelter in Gary’s back yard and tucked away, Ron

252
asked, “So the same as last time?”

“Yep, but only ½ of the Militia, and this time, tell Derek to pick up their weapons,” Gary
said.

Gary went home and read the file. Then, he took it out to the charcoal grill and burned it.
Nobody needed to know what was in THAT file, not ever. So far as those FEMA folks
went, they would do the same thing to them that they did to the Command Post the year
before. They had more sniper teams now and all of the rifles were properly equipped.

They could probably get maybe half of the people before they even knew they were un-
der attack. They’d better do this thing right after dark, too. Maybe that Marshal Marshall
was telling the truth and maybe not. If they kept half of the Militia here at the compound,
it really wouldn’t make any difference. Of course, this probably meant the start of some-
thing that was going to last for a very long time. But, like Gary had said, he had all of the
time in the world. And, the only difference between their Hummer’s and the GI version
was that Chris had put in a LOT of Kevlar and armor plate. It had been real nice of Roy
to pick up the ring mounts for the Mk-19’s and Ma Deuces, too.

253
 Preparations – Chapter 49 – FEMA

It was almost 10pm by the time it got dark enough to move the Militia into place. It was
just 12 sniper teams this time, armed with 6 M-24SWS and 6 .50caliber rifles. And, un-
like the last time, they had also put snipers up on the roof of the Mall itself. The FEMA
folks were surrounded. Derek looked through his binoculars and noticed that the FEMA
guys had something that look a lot like MP5’s, but with subtle differences that he
couldn’t identify. “Maybe these are the 10mm versions,” he thought.

The MP5/10 was the first attempt by HK to manufacture the MP5 in a more powerful
caliber than 9mm. 10mm Auto, also called the Centimeter, is one hot caliber. At the time
of the request for this new caliber, the FBI was hot on this cartridge, since the .40 Smith
& Wesson had not yet been invented. It was the FBI that provided the substantial finan-
cial motivation for HK to retool for the more powerful caliber. FBI has about 1,400 of
these MP5s in inventory, but aside from them, the 10mm MP5 has been eclipsed by the
sale of the much more popular MP5/40.

In a concession to American preference, a bolt hold open device was added. The model
had the early translucent magazines reminiscent of the new G36 series magazines.
MP5/10 and MP5/40 magazines are now light blue polymer, or flat black, and are not
transparent.

HKPRO is a big fan of Tom Clancy, who is a big fan of HK. I was so disappointed when
reading Rainbow Six and Clancy’s referral to the MP5/10 as the MP-10. It is still correct-
ly called the MP5 or MP5/10, not MP-10 as in Rainbow Six. A small price to pay for the
greatness of Clancy’s work. Likewise, the MP5/40 is often referred to incorrectly as the
MP-40. That is the name of a WWII era German submachine gun of completely different
lineage.

UPDATE: These guns are now discontinued, but will be supported with parts and ser-
vice. The advent of the UMP has supplanted the market for these guns, and it will be
available at least in .40 caliber in addition to .45 but probably not 10mm, due to the di-
rection of the market away from this caliber.

[Just thought you’d like to know the real story.]

This time, they started in the middle and worked their way out. Because Ron had said to
get the weapons, the snipers’ observers took on the stragglers with their M16’s rather
than their M203’s. It took longer and the affair became rather noisy because of the re-
turn fire. The LA County Sheriff’s Department began flooding the area with cars, but
when they realized that FEMA was being taken out by some rather skillful marksmen,
they left in a hurry before they were mistaken for the FEMA people. Good move, guys!
The firefight lasted a while; some of the FEMA people had found cover, but eventually…
The Militia snipers slung their rifles and switched to their M-16’s. The 24 individuals ap-
proached the parking lot with a great deal of care, unsure how many were dead and
how many were wounded.

254
“What are those?” Damon asked, looking at the submachine guns.

“I think it’s the 10mm version of the MP5,” Derek said. “Get all of the handguns, too. I
think we’re going to switch to 10mm. You know how much I like the 10mm cartridge.
The FBI bought some, but I don’t know where FEMA came up with these.”

“Sears & Roebuck?” Damon suggested.

The militia loaded the weapons, spare magazines and ammo into their 2 5-ton trucks.
They returned to the housing tract with the Sheriff’s Department in trail. Johnny, Dar-
lene’s ex-husband, must have lost the coin toss, because he was at the gate wanting to
be let in to see the three old geezers.

“Hi, Johnny,” Gary said, “Here to try and seize the guns?”

“No. But listen guys, Palmdale cleaned up pretty good after that business last year so
how about you keep the fighting out of town?” Johnny asked.

“They were here to make a raid on us,” Ron raised his voice.

“We know and we refused to participate,” Johnny replied.

“You also seem to have forgotten to warn us,” Clarence observed.

“Listen, Freedom Medals or not, you three bums are going to the slammer if there’s any
more shooting in Palmdale,” Johnny snapped.

“Just try butthead,” Ron said, “We got more guns and ammo than you do and we don’t
have to have probable cause. But, we weren’t planning on operating in Palmdale any-
way. Someone suggested that with the money and equipment we have, we should ter-
rorize the government.”

“Crap Ron,” Gary said, “Why don’t you give them the date and time of our next attack
while you’re at it?”

“I would if we knew where and when that was,” Ron said.

“Anything else Johnny?” Gary asked.

“You’ve been warned,” Johnny said and left.

“What do you mean you’d tell them the date and time of our next attack?” Gary growled.

“I’d lie,” Ron smiled.

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Derek and Damon walked into the OP.

“I presume it went well,” Gary said.

“We got about 100 of those 10mm MP5’s,” Derek said, and pistols to go with them.”

“What about magazines and ammo?” Ron asked.

“Plenty of mags,” Damon offered, “But not much ammo. Maybe a couple of reloads.”

“Ronald, we need ammo for those weapons,” Gary said, “Call HER up and tell HER we
want 100,000 rounds of whatever those feds have in their weapons. And tell HER if she
tries to gouge me again I going to personally invite her to meet her maker.”

“Dad, we got 100 SMG’s and 100 pistols, more or less,” Derek said.

“Ok, 250,000 rounds, but tell HER she can only mark the stuff up 5% over cost and
shipping,” Gary said. “Did you want to say something else Derek?”

“Never mind,” Derek said. “How about we equip everyone with a 10mm SMG and a
10mm pistol in addition to his or her regular rifle?”

“Suits me,” Gary said.

The next target was going to be the federal building on Wilshire Blvd. They were cruel to
their prisoners and made them wet their pants. Gary figured 2 truckloads of ANFO mix
would do nicely. It ought to blow the building halfway to Santa Monica. And, why rent
trucks? They could steal a couple and Ryder could file an insurance claim.

07Jul06…

“Did you get the ammo yet, Ron?” Gary asked.

“No, it has to come from the factory or distributor or someplace like that,” Ron ex-
plained.

“The price?” Gary asked.

“$195 a case, delivered,” Ron replied. “And no trail to us. So, who are we going to kill
next?”

“We need a semi load of 45-0-0 fertilizer, some nitro methane fuel, oil drums, caps and
dynamite,” Gary said, “How about we do a Timothy McVey?”

256
“It’s a long way to Oklahoma City,” Ron chuckled, “You really want to get out of town.
Johnny got you spooked?”

“Right track, wrong train,” Gary explained, “I was thinking of me wetting my pants.”

“Good, that’s only about a 2 hour drive,” Ron said. “What about trucks?”

“Steal a couple,” Gary said. “Delivered when?”

“The ammo?” Ron asked, “Wednesday.”

OK, we’ll hit on Thursday around noon,” Gary said.

13Jul06…11:45am…

They had mixed up the AFNM in 55-gallon drums. As they placed the drums in the truck
the night before, Roy had taken care of the dynamite and fusing. He’d used det cord
and conventional blasting caps so this ought to be quite the fireworks display. Gary had
no idea what Roy had rigged up to initiate the explosion, but as long as it gave them
time to get a long ways away, it was fine by him. Ron, Clarence and he were parked in
the parking lot of the Getty Museum in Sepulveda Pass. In barely 15 minutes, the
Palmdale Militia was going to send Bush a message, but they weren’t going to claim
credit, let al Qaeda or some other terrorists get the blame.

It turned out to be a good thing that they had their windows rolled down, for it was a
massive explosion and almost perfectly timed. Well, if you seen one cloud, you’ve seen
them all, it was time to go back to Palmdale. They followed Roy and Becky and Jim
back to Palmdale. On the way back, Gary picked out their second target in his mind.
However, 2 Ryder rental trucks would be a little obvious so they would use a semi trac-
tor-trailer rig this time. When they pulled in to the tract, Gary told Roy to get busy on the
next bomb. They were going to set it off on Saturday to minimize the loss of life and it
was 400 miles away.

Bush hadn’t even gotten the FBI report on the explosion before another bomb went off
in Salt Lake City at the Bennett Federal Office Building on Saturday, 15Jul06. The fol-
lowing Monday, they reviewed their successes. They were out of fertilizer and it
wouldn’t do to buy any, it would probably raise a red flag. On the other hand, Fresno
was farming country and anhydrous ammonia was pretty good explosive. How about
stealing a truckload or two of anhydrous.

The LEO’s would just chalk it up to some meth manufacturers and wouldn’t give them a
second thought. Gary went out on the net to see if the idea had any merit. “Explosive
when mixed with chlorinated materials such as hypochlorites. Forms nitrogen trichloride,
which explodes spontaneously in air. Reacts similarly with other halogenated materials.”

257
Nope, it wouldn’t work and it was a cryogenic anyway. But wait, what if they just blew up
a tanker full of anhydrous by itself? Good idea. And, it wouldn’t take much dynamite, ei-
ther.

The next target had to be something good, too. Hmm, how about Seattle, it rained in
Seattle and that meant the relative humidity would be high and… On Wednesday,
19Jul06, a tanker containing and estimated 10,000-gallons of anhydrous ammonia ex-
ploded near the Space Needle on Seattle’s north side. Authorities were at a loss to ex-
plain the explosion. The explosion happened at 3am, greatly reducing the casualties
one might have expected had the explosion occurred at the height of rush hour or later
in the day. CNN was suggesting that the recent explosions, the one in LA, the one in
Salt Lake City and the one in Seattle were no doubt the result of a terrorist campaign.
One reporter, or was that a guest, speculated that there was probably a tie in with the
hijacking of the 747 and the explosions on the Mall.

This was obviously the work of al Qaeda FOX News suggested, after all, who else had
the resources and wherewithal to manage a campaign like this. Homeland Security
raised the terrorist threat level to Orange. In Palmdale, the three old geezers didn’t have
time to watch TV; they were busy planning the next attack by al Qaeda. They hadn’t
done a post office yet, so maybe they should do the mail center in West Des Moines,
Iowa. If they went to Iowa and bought the fertilizer onsite, they could do another ANNM
device. Midnight seemed like a good time, too. Maybe the FBI would attribute this one
to some employee ‘going postal’ but it was unlikely.

“Do you suppose Bush has the message yet?” Clarence asked.

“What message is that Clarence; that he has competition for the terrorist of the year
award?” Ron laughed.

“Does anyone know how to rig up a large stink bomb?” Gary asked. “We could set it off
in Little Rock and send an anonymous letter to a paper claiming that the smell was from
Clinton coming back to town.”

“That’s too complicated Gar-Bear,” Ron suggested. “Anyway, they’re probably used to
the smell so it wouldn’t fly.”

“I still like Little Rock as a target, so why don’t the two of you get your thinking caps on
and come up with something,” Gary suggested.

“Thinking gives me a headache,” Ron said.

“Probably puts too much stain on that ounce of grey matter between your ears Ronald,”
Clarence said.

“Nah,” Ron said, “They checked and said I wouldn’t get headaches if I had that many
brains. This is Gary’s idea so he should come up with something.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 50 – Objections & Objectives

“Dad, you guys have got to stop this!” Derek said, “Blowing up one building and hurting
people was bad enough. After that you guys seemed to go out of your way just to dis-
rupt things, which was okay. But now I hear that you’re going to blow up a post office
sorting center. I happen to know that people work 24/7 in that facility, Dad. You can’t do
that.”

“But Derek, we called in a bomb threat and gave them plenty of time to evacuate,” Gary
said. “I wouldn’t exactly call 3 ATF agents getting killed a major massacre. The bomb in
Salt Lake went off on a Saturday and the anhydrous was released at 3am, for crying out
loud.”

“That’s true, but this postal center thing is going to get a lot of Iowans killed,” Derek
said. “I won’t let you do it.”

“You won’t, huh?” Gary said, his ire rising.

“That’s right, I won’t,” Derek said, “And another thing, why are you guys using ANFO
anyway? It’s a low order explosive.”

“Derek, ANFO is the most commonly used explosive in the world today,” Gary said,
“Besides, we’re using ANNM.”

“Dad, they’ve got tons of explosives at Ft. Irwin,” Derek said. “Real explosives and Roy
is trained to use them.”

“What kind of explosives?” Gary wanted to know.

“Oh just your usual military assortment, C-4, and the special munitions,” Derek replied,
“But being you’re so flush with gold, why don’t you just buy explosives?”

“Derek, what I know about explosives could be written on a postage stamp,” Gary pro-
tested.

“Well, if you’re going to play with the big boys toys, I suggest that you read up on the
subject,” Derek said. “I wrote down a couple of websites where you can learn the ba-
sics.”

“Ok, I’ll read,” Gary agreed, “I suppose that I’d better stop Roy from making that ANNM
for the post office, huh?”

“I already did, Dad,” Derek said. “And as long as all you do is disrupt and mess with the
government, I’m with you on this. But, you go around killing people and you aren’t my
Dad anymore.”

259
So, Gary read the information on the net. The first document was a nice summary, but
the second was full of formulas and went right over Gary’s head. Three hours of steady
reading gave him a six-hour headache. And obviously, he was way out of his league
when it came to playing with explosives. Gary had avoided commercial explosives for
one very simple reason. Commercial explosives, by law, had tags that would allow the
LEO’s to trace the explosives.

He guessed as long as they didn’t buy the commercial explosives, they might be ok to
use. On the other hand, the more people one got involved in a project, the greater the
risk of exposure. So, this was going to have to be an inside job, using their people.

Now, the issue of targets raised a whole new set of questions. So far, only 3 people had
been killed, ATF agents, but still… The idea was to show the American public how inept
the government was at dealing with terrorists and maybe one of those reporters would
pick up on the fact that Dubya and his minions were behind some of the things going on
around the US of A. By the way, ANNM is classified as a high order explosive, but the
key factor was its brisance, whatever that was and it was hygroscopic, which meant it
absorbed moisture from the air. But, since the primary intent was disruption, maybe
bridges, or highway overpasses would be more suitable targets.

20Jul06…

“So, we don’t get to blow up any more buildings?” Ron asked.

“Nope,” Gary replied, “We’re going for targets that will make the government look bad
and inconvenience people, but not hurt anyone. I guess I just lost sight of the objective
for a moment.”

“How are we going to do that?” Clarence asked.

“We’ll get a tractor-trailer load of commercial explosives and fake a set of delivery in-
voices and bills of lading,” Gary said. “We can actually rent a Ryder truck to carry the
detcord, and other things. We’ll pack it with some household goods and put Jim and
Becky in the cab under the pretense they’re moving. Maybe they can even tow that old
Toyota and make it more believable.”

“I’m with you so far,” Ron nodded, “But what are we going to hit?”

“I was thinking about the icons, but decided that would PO too many people,” Gary said,
“So it has to be something that will take a long time to fix and that we can time it so no-
body gets hurt.”

“What are icons?” Clarence asked.

260
“That what the National Park Service calls the Monuments and things like the Statute of
Liberty,” Gary said.

“So what are we going for instead?” Ron repeated.

“Interstate bridges and overpasses, things like that,” Gary explained.

“And just how do you propose to do all of this?” Clarence asked.

“We’ll transport everything to the east coast and work our way home, zigzag fashion,”
Gary said.

“Why the change in plans?” Clarence asked.

“It not so much a change in plans as Derek reminding me what this was all about,” Gary
said. “He was right, too. Anyway, is it a go?”

“What about the Militia?” Ron asked. “We got all those guns and ¼ million rounds of
ammo and it just seems like such a waste.”

“Ron, back when we were kids, some guy named LeBlanc promoted a patent medicine
called Hadacol,” Gary explained. “It was just a little honey, a little of this and that, and a
stiff shot of alcohol hyped up with vitamin B. Anyway, the guy was brilliant at marketing.
It gave me an idea. We can buy some new semi-trailers and paint them up like Coca-
Cola delivery trucks. No one will give them a second look. We can outfit the insides of
the trailers as rolling motels, etc. Every time the Militia comes up against some of those
ATF agents or FEMA folks, we’ll take them out.”

“Now you’re talking partner,” Ron said.

Before it was all said and done, they ditched the Ryder truck idea and decided to just
have a fleet of Coca-Cola trucks. Everyone would think it was some ad campaign by
Coke and Coke would probably not object since they were getting free advertising. They
bought a fleet of tractors and trailers and implemented the plan. Roy and his little group
of scavengers collected the explosives and they fixed up the trailers with bunks, toilets,
showers, etc. Heck, they even put in false door that were stacked with 12-packs of Coke
just to complete the illusion.

03Sep06…0530…

The fleet of semis was parked on I-278 on Staten Island, pointed west. They were just
past the Verrazano Narrows Bridge. During the night, they had wired the bridge to drop
2 sections. Everything was on a timer set to go off at Midnight at the end of the Labor
Day holiday tomorrow. They divided up and headed for the other 3 bridges serving
Staten Island. If all went well, they would be in Wilmington, Delaware before the explo-
sions even went off. They were going to take I-95, pick up I-10, drive west to I-65 and

261
wind their way north, leaving a wake of destruction behind them. It had occurred to
someone that this Coca-Cola idea was pretty good, but sooner or later someone would
put 2 and 2 together and start stopping Coke trucks. So, they brought a couple of com-
pressors, paint sprayers and all sorts of decals to alter the appearance of the trailers
and semis.

It had taken a while to get everything just right, and hadn’t been cheap, but they even
had a command trailer for Gary, Ron and Clarence. And, since a plan, no matter how
good, never survives first contact with the enemy, Gary had brought along some of that
gold to oil the squeaking wheels. The economy was in the toilet, Bush was up to his
hind end in reptilians, and all it was going to take was a little shove to set things right.

05Sep06…

My Fellow Americans,

The terrorists have stuck yet again. Secretary Ridge assures me that the Department of
Homeland Security is on top of this situation and the FBI expects to make arrests at any
moment. Fortunately no lives were lost in the explosions that destroyed the 4 bridges
connecting Staten Island to Long Island, and New Jersey. This is yet another example
of the string of terrorist activities that began with the hijacking of the 747 earlier this
year. To date, these terrorists have hijacked a 747, which, regrettably, I had to order
shot down, exploded a series of bombs on the Mall causing massive loss of life and in-
juries, destroyed two federal buildings, one in Los Angeles and one in Salt Lake and
caused a massive anhydrous ammonia spill in Seattle.

Laura and I pray for all the people who will be inconvenienced by using the Staten Is-
land Ferry. This will not be allowed to continue, you have my personal assurance on
that.

The CIA has assured me that Muslim Extremists are behind these actions. As a conse-
quence, I will appear before Congress seeking permission to seek out and destroy the
Muslim Extremists in their very homes. Our military is much stronger now and we boast
a 15 Division Army. I will do whatever it takes to bring an end to this senseless destruc-
tion of the American infrastructure.

Regrettably, to pay for the additional costs of these actions, I am being forced to ask
Congress to repeal all of the tax cuts I sponsored during my first term in office, with one
exception. The capital gains law will be lowered to 14%. In addition, we will be forced to
double the fees at all National Parks and Monuments. I also intend to ask Congress to
impose an additional, temporary, 10% surcharge on the price of gasoline.”

This terror must stop. We will see that it does. I thank you.

God Bless America.

262
°

“George is starting to sound like a Democrat,” Ron laughed. “Even Kerry didn’t want to
go that far.”

“Did you notice how he rolled up all of the attacks into one package and blamed them all
on al Qaeda?” Gary asked. “And that crap about making arrests at any moment?”

“What did you expect him to say Gary?” Clarence asked. “I had the CIA hijack the airlin-
er just so I could create an incident and I had the CIA blow up the Mall so I had an ex-
cuse to start another war?”

“What do you think Marshal Marshall?” Gary asked.

“I think that Marshal or Marshall would be enough,” Marshall said, “I don’t know if you’re
talking to me or my badge.”

“Can you get me one of those badges?” Ron asked, “They’re kind of neat.”

They were now in Virginia Beach, Virginia, just a few miles from the Chesapeake Bay
Bridge. The bridge was a marvel of engineering and had two spans that ran across the
mouth of the Chesapeake Bay. The bridge was now well guarded, but they were going
to take a boat out into the Bay and knock down four support pillars. It wouldn’t bring the
country to its knees, but it would most certainly make a statement.

Bush didn’t even bother to go on TV after the Chesapeake Bay Bridge fell. The word
was that Congress had no intention of approving any new War Against Terror and it ap-
peared that his proposed tax increases wouldn’t fly either. The House was calling for
Tom Ridge’s resignation. And, the Senate had voted to investigate the rash of attacks,
right after he’d given his last speech.

“What next partner?” Ron asked.

“Well, there’s this nice bridge going across Lake Marion,” Gary said. “And, there’s a
bridge across the Chattahoochee River on US 82.”

“We keep doing bridges, they’re going to catch us,” Clarence argued.

“Alright, we’ll do these two and then you can pick the target Clarence, do you have any-
thing in mind?” Gary asked.

“I got throwed in jail once down in New Orleans,” Clarence said, “Drunk and disorderly.
Anyway, there’s this Lake Point Chartrain Causeway.”

“Clarence, that’s just another bridge,” Ron said.

263
“But it’s different Ron,” Clarence said, “That jail was a terrible place and those boys
down in New Orleans were purely mean.”

“When did this all happen Clarence?” Gary asked.

“1963,” Clarence replied.

“The folks down in New Orleans might have changed a bit since 1963 Clarence,” Gary
suggested.

“I don’t care, you said I got to pick the next target,” Clarence insisted.

“Ron, do you like Cajun food?” Gary asked.

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 Preparations – Chapter 51 – All that Jazz

“Do you mean like Jambalaya, Crawfish Pie, File Gumbo and Macheramio?” Ron
asked.

“Ron that’s ma cher amio and I think Roy Orbison was trying to say something like my
dear friend in Cajun,” Gary explained.

“Whatever,” Ron said. “No.”

“No, what?” Gary asked.

“I don’t like Cajun food, it isn’t spicy enough” Ron said.”

Two bridges later found the trucks repainted in a variety of schemes, no two alike, and
our friends at Antoine’s in New Orleans. They hadn’t attacked the causeway, yet.

“Why did we come here?” Ron asked.

“In 1953, my Mom and Dad ate here,” Gary explained.

“Food any good?” Ron asked.

“It was in 1953, according to them, but they may have changed the menu in the last 53
years,” Gary suggested.

“I want a poboy,” Clarence said.

“This menu is in French,” Ron said, “Anyone speak French?”

“Enough to know that we’re in the wrong place,” Gary said. “Clarence, there’s no poboy
on the menu. And coffee is $2.75 a cup. Milk is $.50 extra. And they have an $11.00
minimum per person.”

“I knowed you should have let me pick the restaurant,” Clarence said.

Clarence had them there. They found about 30 restaurants in a 10-block radius that
sold poboy’s and they were from $5 - $10. You could afford to drink the coffee, too if
you called that stuff coffee.

“By the way Clarence,” Gary observed, “I was looking at the signs and it’s Lake Pont-
chartrain Causeway, not Lake Point Chartrain Causeway. Anyway, it might be a little
risky, do you have another idea?”

“Well, if I can get a poboy to go, I guess we could just blow up the bridges across the
Mississippi,” Clarence said.

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My Fellow Americans,

Tonight I am making an appeal directly to the Muslim Terrorists. Your campaign against
the American infrastructure has been successful to this point. At this moment, federal
agents are wise to your mode of travel and we are making arrests. Surrender now and
avoid further bloodshed. If you do, I personally assure you that you will be allowed to
speak with an attorney. Otherwise, under the provisions of the new Patriot Act, you will
be held for questioning at our Camp Delta in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for an extended
period and fed nothing but BLT’s and roast pork.

Laura and I send our prayers to the residents of New Orleans.

God Bless America.

“Let’s surrender,” Clarence said, “I like roast pork.”

“Do you speak Arabic or Farsi Clarence?” Ron asked.

“No,” Clarence reluctantly admitted.

“Here, I bought you an extra poboy,” Ron said, “Gar-Bear, let’s go blow up some more
bridges.”

“I’m bored,” Gary responded, “Let’s just go back to Palmdale. We haven’t gotten to
shoot a single fed either.”

09Oct06…Moon Shadows…0900…

“Good morning Gary,” Clarence smiled.

“Morning partner,” Ron half agreed.

“Good morning,” Gary said, “What’s up?”

“Gold,” Ron said “$1,625 an ounce.” (Gary was down to 90 ingots, $58,500,000.)

“No, I mean what’s new?” Gary said.

“SSDD,” Ron announced.

“Then why is the compound being watched?” Gary asked.

“What?” Ron said.

266
“Derek spotted the guy yesterday afternoon,” Gary explained.

“How many people are there?” Clarence asked.

“Just one, so far,” Gary replied.

“Why don’t we take the guy out?’ Ron asked.

“Ron, get real,” Gary groaned, “Say it’s the government and we take their guy out. In
case you don’t remember, Dubya has a whole lot of fighters and bombers and tanks
and crap. He could turn this whole compound into a pile of rubble in about 2 minutes
flat.”

“What are we going to do Gary?” Clarence asked.

“I’ve got the militia on alert,” Gary explained. “They’re putting up a cyclone fence around
the propane tanks and stringing the barbed wire.”

“What’s the cyclone fence for?” Ron asked.

“I got the idea from a friend of mine. You put a ring of fencing around the tanks to inter-
cept RPG’s, AT-4s and the like. They’re going to do the water tower too.”

“How far out?” Ron asked.

“I couldn’t remember, but I figured 30’ would do, so 30’,” Gary replied.

“Well, Gary,” Clarence said, “We might just as well bend over and kiss our butts good-
bye.”

“Look guys,” Gary reflected, “They can’t be too overt about what they do. I figured those
Freedom Medals weren’t worth the tin they were made out of, but I realized that we’re
sort of heroes or something and what we need to do is draw a lot of attention to our-
selves. Why don’t we invite CNN and FOX News and all those folks to see what we’ve
done with the compound to prepare for natural disasters and the like? And, of course to
protect ourselves against those Muslim Terrorists who’ve been around blowing up the
bridges.”

“But,” Clarence said, “We’re the Muslim Terrorists who’ve been blowing up the bridges.”

“You know that and I know that, but they don’t know that,” Gary suggested. “We get out
the .22 rifles and long barrel shotguns and complain that we can’t really defend our-
selves because of the Assault Weapons Ban.”

“It might just work,” Ron agreed.

267
“I sure hope so,” Gary said, “It was the best I could come up with.”

The best defense is always a good offense. Ron was the charmer, so he got on the
phone and started calling newspapers, radio stations and TV stations. CNN and FOX
got a whiff of a possible human-interest story and they jumped on the bandwagon. The
three old geezers went around and made sure the real weapons were put up and the
.22’s and long barreled shotguns were being prominently displayed. The militia worked
as fast as possible to get the cyclone fences up and when the media showed up the
next morning, they were busy string the barbed wire.

Gary, Ron and Clarence put on quite the show. They’d been forced, they said, to spend
the entire $50 million reward on taxes and just staying safe. Rewards, Gary insisted
should be tax-free anyway. They went on about how they used to have M1A rifles, but
with the new assault weapons ban, were forced to defend their homes against the ter-
rorists with a few measly .22 rifles, shotguns and the venerable .45 Colt auto. They de-
clined to let the media see the entire compound asserting that they didn’t want to give
the terrorists a road map on how to attack them or disclose any vulnerabilities they
might have. (Derek hadn’t had time to hide the tanks.) Gary suggested to one reporter,
off the record of course, that they even suspected that the terrorists were watching them
at this very moment. There was one of them right across the road in that field.

Now, we all know how reporters are, don’t we? It didn’t take the reporter more than 5
minutes to drag a camera crew to the field and ‘interview’ the ‘terrorist’. He claimed to
be an ATF agent just keeping a watch over the compound as a special favor to the
President. Bush looked out for America’s heroes, after all. That might have worked if he
had said US Marshal or FBI, but ATF was Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms wasn’t it, the
reporter asked? Yes of course, the agent said. Well, were the Palmdale Militia members
suspected of moon shining or bootlegging cigarettes or having too short of barrels on
their shotguns the reporter asked. It was nothing of the sort the agent insisted, the FBI
was just shorthanded because they were looking for those Muslim Terrorists.

That evening the FOX News reporter showed the video and suggested that the agent
had been less than forthcoming. He even showed film of the water tower and said that
Gary was being sued by the City of Palmdale for nothing more serious than putting in a
water tank for emergencies. The media attention had the desired effect. The downside
was that reporter’s kept showing up for follow-up interviews. But, the news media being
the news media, interest in the story began to wane. That didn’t dissuade the three old
geezers; they simply got Roy and a couple others to attack the compound with the Bar-
rett rifles and called the Sheriff’s Department begging for protection. By the time the
Sheriff’s Deputies got there, everyone was back in the compound, but Gary, Ron and
Clarence made a big show of pointing out the chunks of concrete that had been
knocked out of the block walls.

You cannot do things like what the group had done without leaving a few tracks. An FBI
agent picked up on the fact that the boys had been in Antoine’s about the same time as

268
the two bridges were taken out in New Orleans. That was the only link they could find,
but it was enough to confirm the suspicions that the Palmdale Militia was somehow
mixed up in the whole affair. When Dubya got the word, he was livid. He got with the
CIA and they hatched a plot to attack the compound with a group of mercenaries, pur-
portedly Arabs. The usual expression is what you don’t know can’t hurt you. That might
be true, in most cases, but somehow didn’t quite apply when you were referring to the
Moon Shadows housing tract. Since they had been very public about their preparations,
a lot of the local residents wrote them off as kooks and just stayed away from the tract.
This allowed the militia and residents to dig out the real weapons and keep them handy,
but just out of sight. Gary, Ron and Clarence figured they were home free, but Derek
wasn’t as certain and he kept the militia at yellow alert.

Saturday 28Oct06, 0300…

The ‘Muslims’ opened up on the housing tract and trailer park with their Ak-47’s and
RPG’s. There were nearly 60 of them, all paid handsomely to stage the attack. Accord-
ing to the intelligence they’d been given, this bunch of militiamen had been someone to
reckon with at one time, but had been defanged by the AWB. It was just Ron’s bad luck
to get stuck with the duty that night, but he’d soldiered on. Then he caught the move-
ment and had put out the word.

By the time the attackers were in position, so was the militia. The attackers rushed the
place, thinking that their Kevlar vests would protect them. And, if the militia had used
their new 10mm weapons, they might have, but the militia was equipped with their
M16’s and the M995 ammo that night. The M16’s had a little better range than the
MP5/10’s and they just automatically grabbed the M16’s out of habit. It was a pretty
good thing that Ron’s personal weapons included those 4 5.56×45 bolt-action rifles,
wasn’t it? At least, that’s what they told CNN when they showed up.

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 Preparations – Chapter 52 – Larry King Live

The resulting media attention culminated in Larry King inviting the three old geezers to
appear on his show during early November when he did a week in LA.

“Just so my viewers have this straight gentlemen, this is Gary Olsen on my left, Ron
Green in the center and Clarence Rawlings on my right. I understand that you’ve built
quite the survivalist community up there in Palmdale. Gary, you’re the individual who
were responsible for the arrest of Wesley Clark, is that correct?” Larry asked.

“Yes, Larry, I went to get a hot fudge Sundae and I happened to overhear him speaking
to his wife,” Gary replied.

“Did you recognize his voice immediately?” Larry asked.

“Actually no, I have short term memory problems due to diabetes and I was halfway
through the Sundae before it occurred to me where I knew the voice from,” Gary ex-
plained.

“And then you spoke to a Deputy Sheriff?” Larry prompted.

“Yes Larry, I went immediately to the LA County Sheriff’s station in the Mall, but the
Deputy didn’t believe me,” Gary answered, “I had to tell him to check the guy’s ID and if
I was wrong he could arrest me.”

“So…” Larry continued.

“So, they arrested General Clark and his wife, Larry,” Gary said, “I asked about my re-
ward but the Deputy put me off. Anyway, the next thing you know, a bunch of US Mar-
shals showed up at the Moon Shadows housing tract and transported the entire
Palmdale Militia to Washington. They also brought my two sons from Iowa. They gave
everyone in the service the Distinguished Service Cross and Ron, Clarence, my son
Damon and me the Presidential Medal of Freedom.”

“Ron, you must have been pretty proud to receive the award,” Larry switched.

“You bet,” Ron said.

“Tell me Clarence, what does it feel like to be in the company of such distinguished per-
sons as Hank Aaron, Pearl Bailey, the Reverend Jesse Jackson and the Reverend Dr.
Martin Luther King?” Larry asked.

It’s feels good, Larry,” Clarence said, “I didn’t know they gave it to Jesse Jackson.”

“Let’s get back to this survival community you built, can you tell me more about it Gary?”
Larry asked.

270
“Larry, after the federal government and the state of California got done with those un-
reasonable taxes, I had $25.7 million left,” Gary explained. “If figured it would be a good
idea to build a permanent survival community right there in Palmdale. So, my friends,
Ron and Clarence here, moved in and I bought several homes for my children.”

“So your children live at Moon Shadows too?” Larry asked.

Yes, Larry, they do,” Gary replied. “Anyway, to make a long story short, I put in some
big propane tanks and generators. I bought the abandoned trailer park next to Moon
Shadows and put the Palmdale Militia up at greatly reduced rentals. Then, I bought an-
other lot between the housing tract and the trailer park and put in more generators and
a larger propane tank. That’s when my troubles began. The Palmdale City Council re-
fused to allow me a permit to erect a water tower. I had words with them and built the
tower anyway. I mean what good are survival preparations without water? Anyway they
sued me.”

“I understand that you had some rather choice language for the City Council, Gary,” Lar-
ry said.

“Yeah, that’s right I told them, oh, I guess I can’t say that on TV can I? Anyway, I got me
a cracker jack lawyer and this thing will be in litigation when I die in 30 or 40 years.”

“After the break, we’ll learn more about these gentlemen’s interesting lives,” Larry said
and went to break.

“Whew, I thought you were going to say that on the air, Gary,” Larry said. “We’ll pick up
with the allegation out of the White House that you men were in New Orleans when the
bridges were bombed.”

“Suits me, Larry,” Gary smiled.

“Welcome back, my guests tonight are Gary Olsen, Ron Green and Clarence Rawlings
of the Palmdale Militia and the Moon Shadows survival community in Palmdale, Califor-
nia,” Larry announced, “Tell me Gary how did Moon Shadows get its name?”

“I don’t know, but the street I live on was named after the James Bond movie, Moonrak-
er,” Gary replied.

“You were telling us about your survival community, Gary,” Larry said, “Let me bring up
something else, there have been veiled allegations from the White House that you three
were somehow mixed up in the bombing of those bridges in New Orleans, can you tell
me about that?”

“Larry it goes back a lot further than that,” Gary said, “Supposedly some woman gave
the government a tip that we were involved in the downing of that 747 carrying all of

271
those veterans. I’m a veteran myself and I’d never be involved in anything like that. An-
yway, just as you folks were switching to coverage of Bush’s speech, US Marshals
came busting into my home, Ron’s and Clarence’s. They arrested us, hauled us down
to Los Angeles and detained us without asking any of us a single question.”

“Do I understand this right, Gary, not a single question?” Larry seemed surprised.

“Well, the Marshal, his name is Marshall Thomas and he lives at Moon Shadows now,
asked me if I wanted a Coke and then wanted to argue with me over whether I could
have a regular Coke or a Diet Coke,” Gary explained.

“Really?” Larry responded.

“Yes. He brought me a regular Coke and then left me sitting there needing to use the
facilities, if you know what I mean. It was really embarrassing. Anyway, a while later, he
came in and they released us without asking a single question.”

“You don’t say,” Larry acknowledged. “So, what does this have to do with New Orle-
ans?”

“It’s a pattern of behavior Larry, pure and simple,” Gary replied. “Anyway, one day Ron,
Clarence and I got to visiting about Cajun food and poboys and I mentioned that my
folks had eaten at a restaurant named Antoine’s in New Orleans in 1953. One thing led
to another and we ended up sitting at Antoine’s in New Orleans.”

“I’ve eaten there, the food is quite impressive,” Larry announced.

“Maybe for you, but the prices are outrageous, at least to me,” Gary said, “And they
didn’t have poboys on the menu. Anyway, we left and went to another restaurant and
returned to Palmdale.”

“I see,” Larry said, “Clarence were the poboys your idea or Ron’s?”

“Mine, Larry, Ron doesn’t like Cajun food, he says it’s not spicy enough,” Clarence re-
plied.

“Ron is that true, it’s not spicy enough for you?”

“You bet,” Ron said.

“We have to take a commercial break right now, but I’ll be back with Clarence, Ron and
Gary, the dynamic trio from Palmdale, California,” Larry announced.

“After the break, we’ll pick this up with the guy in the field, ok?” Larry asked.

“Fine,” Gary replied.

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“Welcome back, my guests tonight are Gary Olsen, Ron Green and Clarence Rawlings
of the Palmdale Militia and the Moon Shadows survival community in Palmdale, Califor-
nia,” Larry announced, “Gary let me get back to you. I understand that shortly after the
New Orleans trip, you fellows caught someone spying on you?”

“That’s right Larry, my other son Derek saw this guy in the field,” Gary said.

“And you…” Larry prompted.

“We started taking precautions like putting up barriers around the tanks against Rocket
Propelled Grenades,” Gary picked up. “We also started putting up barbed wire to protect
ourselves. Anyway, somehow the news media picked up on that and the next thing you
know we were flooded with reporters. What else could we do, we gave them a tour of
our community.”

“And the man in the field?’ Larry asked.

“Oh, well, I mentioned, off the record you understand, to some reporter that we were be-
ing spied on and you know what happened next, it was on all the news,” Gary com-
mented.

“For those who don’t know,” Larry said, “The man in the field turned out to be an ATF
agent, allegedly sent by President Bush to protect the housing tract.”

“Allegedly is right Larry,” Gary interrupted, “How do you protect a housing tract by hiding
in the weeds?”

“That’s a good question Gary, but I don’t have the answer,” Larry said.

“So a few weeks later, the housing tract and the trailer park were attacked, is that right?”
Larry asked.

“That’s right Larry, about 3am on the morning of October 28th, Ron was standing watch
in the OP, that’s our Observation Post, and he saw some guys coming in from the field
across the road. As luck would have it, Ron had 4 5.56×45 rifles in his personal collec-
tion. They’re still legal under this stupid Assault Weapons Ban you know. Anyway, Ron
put out the alarm and the militia was ready for them. All we had was .22 rifles, some le-
gal shotguns and those 4 rifles, but, we got lucky and killed them all,” Gary raved on.

“And afterwards?” Larry prompted.

“Well it turned out that they were mercenaries someone hired to murder us,” Gary said.
“You know Larry, it just doesn’t make sense. Freedom Medals or not, it’s like the White
House is out to get us. I have it on good authority that Wesley Clark was shot first and
then shoved out that door. They accused us of hijacking that plane when we were in our

273
homes in Palmdale. Then we make an innocent trip to New Orleans for a poboy and
some Cajun food and the ATF starts watching our housing tract. And then mercenaries
attack us. I agree with President Bush, it’s the same people behind all of this, but it isn’t
us. I’d sooner think it was the CIA, and, I have that on good authority, too.”

“Ron, is that how you see it?” Larry asked.

“You bet,” Ron said.

“And Clarence what do you have to say?” Larry rounded out the interview.

“Did they really give the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Jesse Jackson?” Clarence
asked.

“August 9, 2000 by President Clinton,” Larry replied.

“Well I’ll be darned,” Clarence muttered.

“Unfortunately, we’ve run over tonight and don’t have time for viewers’ calls,” Larry an-
nounced. “I’d like to thank our guests, Clarence Rawlings, Ronald Green and Gary Ol-
sen, the Palmdale Three. Gentlemen it has been a pleasure and thought provoking.”

“Gary, I swear, your nose grew 4” during that show,” Clarence laughed.

“Clarence, I just told it like I see it,” Gary smiled.

“More like how you want the public to see it Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “You did everything
but paint a target on our old friend George.”

“Do you have any doubt that the man has blood on his hands, Ronald?” Gary asked.

“Not really, no,” Ron replied. “Did you ever work in advertising Gar? Or as an actor?
That was a pretty fine performance tonight.”

“I had a good teacher Ron,” Gary said, “I used to watch Wolf Blitzer.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 53 – FOX News

10Nov2006…

“Bill O’Reilly was talking about our appearance on Larry King Live,” Clarence said, “Did
you see the show?’

“I like O’Reilly Clarence, but I can’t stand FOX News,” Gary replied. “Nope didn’t see it.”

“What you got against FOX news?” Clarence asked, “They’re better than CNN.”

“True enough buddy, but Geraldo works for FOX,” Gary explained, “You know, ‘tell them
where our troops are Geraldo’.”

“But you get the bad with the good Gary,” Clarence said, “Don’t watch his show if you
don’t like him. Don’t matter anyway; he’s going to stop reporting. He’s running for of-
fice.”

“Let me get this straight Clarence, Geraldo Rivera, who is a lawyer who doesn’t practice
law and is a reporter who can’t keep his mouth shut is going to become a politician?”

“That’s right, why?” Clarence asked.

“Oh nothing, I just hate politicians, lawyers and reporters, that’s all,” Gary said, “And
now you’re telling me I’m going to have all three rolled up in one package, right?”

“That’s right Gary,” Clarence said, “Don’t be too hard on the boy, people will think you’re
prejudiced.”

“Clarence, I read an article on CNN that said, “US military officials told CNN on Monday
morning that Rivera violated the cardinal rule of war reporting by giving away crucial de-
tails of military plans during a Fox News Channel broadcast from Iraq, where the report-
er was temporarily assigned to the Army’s 101st Airborne Division. In the live broadcast,
Rivera told his photographer to aim the camera at the sand in front of him. Rivera then
outlined a map of Iraq, and showed the relative location of Baghdad and his location
with the 101st Airborne. He then showed where the 101st would be going next,” Gary
explained. “I don’t like the guy. I don’t care one way or the other that he’s ½ Jewish and
½ Puerto Rican. He’s got a BIG mouth.”

“When was that?” Clarence asked.

“In 2003,” Gary said, “I only have problems with my short term memory.”

“He’s going to make a public appearance in Los Angeles, want to go see him and tell
him to his face?” Clarence said.

275
“When?” Gary asked.

“Next Monday,” Clarence replied.

“Gee, I have something to do next Monday,” Gary said, “But thanks for asking.”

13Nov06…

“You should have come Gary, it was awful,” Clarence said, “Now you won’t get a
chance to speak to Geraldo and tell him what you think of him.”

“I was planning on sending an email, but I got busy,” Gary said, “What do you mean I
won’t be able to tell him what I think of him?”

“You haven’t heard?” Clarence asked.

“Heard what?” Gary asked back.

“Somebody shot him,” Clarence explained.

“Really?” Gary said, “That’s a real shame, Clarence. I guess I won’t send him that email
after all. What, some disgruntled fan walk up and put one in his gut?”

“No, someone shot him with a high powered silenced rifle,” Clarence added. “They said
on the radio the shot was from 500 yards away.”

“I’m real sorry about that Clarence, I know how much you admired the guy,” Gary said.

“Where did you get the idea I admired the guy?” Clarence asked.

“Last week you said…” Gary started to say.

“That people will think you’re prejudiced,” Clarence said. “I didn’t say I liked the guy, he
was a real show off.”

“Well, anyway, “Gary said, “Sorry you had to see it. Did they catch they guy?”

“No, he made a clean getaway,” Clarence replied.

“But they got a description, right?” Gary said.

“Afraid not Gary,” Clarence said. “They said that the police are completely stumped.”

“Geraldo once said that people either liked him or didn’t like him, Clarence, “I guess
someone just got tired of him shooting off his mouth. I wish I’d been there.”

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“I be talking to you later Gary,” Clarence said.”

“Take care buddy,” Gary acknowledged.

“600 yards,” Gary thought.

Apparently a Democratic member of Congress caught the Larry King Live performance.
The director of the CIA’s name was added to the witness list. The Senator who wanted
the name on the list was Senator John Kerry.

“Mr. Director, welcome, I have only a few questions,” Kerry said. “President Bush has
said that the same group was behind the hijacking of the 747, the explosions on the
Mall, the attacks on the federal buildings, the attack in Seattle and the attacks on the
bridges around our nation, do you concur in that assessment?”

“I have no knowledge to the contrary Senator,” the Director replied.

“And that group is a Muslim Terrorist group, is that not so?” Kerry asked.

“I have no knowledge to the contrary Senator,” the Director replied.

“It has been suggested that this same group of Muslim Extremists is responsible for the
attack on that housing tract in Palmdale, California, Mr. Director,” Kerry continued, “Do
you have any knowledge to the contrary?”

“No, Senator, I do not,” the Directory replied.

“Mr. Director, was the CIA responsible for those bridge bombings?” Kerry asked.

“No sir,” the DCI insisted.

“But you do agree with President Bush that the same people were behind all of the
events, is that no so?” Kerry back traced.

“That’s what I testified to Senator,” the DCI replied.

“It has also been alleged that the Muslim Terrorists who made the Palmdale attack were
mercenaries, is that not so?” Kerry continued.

“I’ve heard those reports Senator, yes,” the Director replied.

“Certain parties have alleged that those mercenaries were employed by the CIA, Mr.
Director. Do you have any knowledge to the contrary?”

277
“No, Senator, I do not,” the Directory replied.

“Hypothetically, Mr. Director, would you be able to run such an operation on your own?”
Senator Kerry asked.

“No Senator, hypothetically, if such an operation had been run by the CIA, it would have
had to have been authorized,” the Director replied.

“By whom?” Kerry asked.

“By the only person with such authority, Senator,” the Director replied, seeing where this
was going.”

“And who, Mr. Director, would have such authority?” Kerry asked.

“The President of the United States, Senator,” the Director replied, “If such an order had
been given.”

“I see. Mr. Director, are you familiar with the Tom Clancy movie, “Clear and Present
Danger?”

“Of course, Senator, it was a good film,” the Director replied.

“But that was only a movie, not real life, correct?” Kerry commented.

“Correct Senator,” the Director answered.

“Thank you Mr. Director, I have no further questions,” Senator Kerry responded.

The Senator had done what he had set out to do. By mixing the real and hypothetical,
he had planted a thought in the minds of the viewers. Kerry thought that the old men’s
presence in New Orleans was an odd coincidence. Kerry didn’t know who was behind
any of the events and didn’t care, but IF he assumed the men had something to do with
the bridges, well now, he had an opening.

The reference to the movie was to the Ritter character, who had explained to Jack how
to answer questions posed by an inquiry by the Senate or House. Kerry had not alleged
that Bush was behind anything, but he had shown that only Bush could have given the
order. If Kerry had been half that clever in 2004, Edwards and he would have won the
election. He was looking good for 2008, however. The questioning of the DCI was con-
sidered sufficiently newsworthy to warrant live coverage by cable news.

“Did they just say we did the whole thing?” Clarence asked Ron and Gary.

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“I’m not sure Clarence,” Ron said, “But no, I don’t think so.”

“In my opinion, Clarence, Kerry just did us a big favor,” Gary suggested. “He got that
DCI to say two times that the same group was responsible for everything. We didn’t hi-
jack that 747 or bomb the Mall. We certainly didn’t attack ourselves or hire someone to
do it. Ergo, we didn’t bomb the bridges.”

An ear-to-ear grin began to spread on Clarence face. “That’s right Gary, we didn’t blow
up those bridges, did we?’ Clarence announced.

“You are the most underhanded, conniving SOB I’ve ever known Gary Olsen,” Ron
laughed, “Let me shake your hand.”

“I may have to vote for Kerry/Edwards in 2008,” Gary said, “At least he’s against the
USA Patriot Act II.”

Back in Washington, the new DCI was worried. He’d only gotten the job because the
Senate had pressed Bush to hurry up and replace George Tenet. And if the CIA was
involved in this mess, it was only because the President bypassed him in the chain-of-
command and worked directly with some of the old Bush cronies in the Agency.

Well, he’d been looking for a job when he gotten this one, so what the hell. On the other
hand, if the Agency were involved, he had a good idea who within the Agency was re-
sponsible. Maybe he could get on Kerry’s good side and pick up an unlikely supporter.
Kerry had toned down some of his rhetoric since he’d been appointed to fill Kennedy’s
vacant position. Yes sir, he was going to give this some serious thought.

The LAPD’s investigation into the assassination of Geraldo Rivera was going nowhere
fast. They had determined that the killer had escaped because they had gotten the dis-
tance wrong and had been looking in the wrong place. The distance was 600 yards, not
500 yards, as they had originally believed. And they sort of had an eyewitness. One of
the under the bridge gang was claiming that he’d seen a crippled old man lugging a
huge rifle to the spot where they now presumed that the shot had come from.

But, the description the drunk gave was, at best, vague. A short, elderly cripple wearing
faded denims, a golf shirt and a cowboy hat with a Band-Aid was all the drunk could
remember. The guy had walked like his feet hurt, according to the drunk. And he drove
an old, non-descript Toyota that the drunk hadn’t gotten the license plate number of. Do
you have any idea how many old, non-descript Toyotas there are in southern Califor-
nia? Or, how many seniors made California their home because of the weather?

Then a drive by shooting occurred in south central and the detective was assigned to
handle that case. The LAPD was perennially short staffed and the Geraldo murder case
got shoved to the bottom of the stack. If he couldn’t solve the murder case, it was no big

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deal; they’d probably put it on TV on A & E’s American Justice or on CBS’s Cold Case.
His pet theory was that some skinhead who didn’t like Puerto Ricans or Jews or both
had dressed himself up as an old man and left a trail of false clues. A grungy cowboy
hat with a Band-Aid on it? Yeah, right, it was obviously a false clue.

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 Preparations – Chapter 54 – Good News/Bad News

The attorney called to advise Gary that the City of Palmdale was dropping its lawsuit
over the water tower. That was good news. The attorney’s fees were more than the wa-
ter tower had cost. That was the bad news. Gold was now $1,685 an ounce
($60,660,000), so it didn’t matter, one way or the other.

Question:

I recently took a Flag Etiquette Quiz at another site. One of the questions concerned
proper disposal of the American flag. The question was “How should you dispose of a
US flag that’s beyond repair?”

Options were 1) Burn it 2) Shred it 3) Give it to your local government or American Le-
gion Post to dispose of

The quiz gave the correct answer as “You should give a flag that’s beyond repair to your
local government or American Legion Post to dispose of.” But my local government
would not accept our old flag. What should I do to dispose of an old flag?

USA Flag Site Answer:

Their answer came from an incorrect interpretation of this sentence at the Federal Citi-
zen Information Center of the US General Services Administration (the GSA):

“American Legion Posts and local governments often have facilities to dispose of unser-
viceable flags.”

While that statement is true, it’s also true that they often have neither the facilities nor
the knowledge. Furthermore, many municipalities have contacted USA Flag Site for
what they should do with unserviceable flags. The only definitive answer is found in the
US Flag Code. TITLE 4 > CHAPTER 1 > Sec. 8(k). It states:

“The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display,
should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning”

There is a lot of difference between a soiled US flag and a grungy old straw hat, but
Gary felt that the hat was as deserving as the Flag. He laid it in the charcoal grill and
touched a match to it. He almost got burned in the process; the old hat was so full of
grease, it flared quickly, taking him by surprise. When the fire burned out, Gary got a
cup of coffee and headed to Ron’s. They needed to talk about that Senate Intelligence
Committee report. The report had, as usual, raised more questions than it had an-
swered.

“Morning Gar,” Ron said, “What’s new?”

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“Not much, Ron, I wanted to ask what you thought of the Senate Intelligence Committee
report,” Gary replied.

“What are you so down about?” Ron asked, “Forget to take your Zoloft, again?”

“No, an old friend died,” Gary said, “That’s all.”

“I think that we’re in the clear here, Gar-Bear,” Ron returned to the subject of the report.
“They didn’t arrive at any conclusions about who was responsible for the wave of at-
tacks, but they did conclude that the same bunch was responsible for everything.”

“And since we are in the clear on the 747 thing and the Mall bombing, we out of the
loop, huh?” Gary surmised.

“I think so, yes,” Ron agreed.

“Good, maybe we should go out and stir up a little more hate and discontent,” Gary
suggested.

“Do you have anything particular in mind, Gar?” Ron asked.

“Not really, no,” Gary answered. “Do you have any ideas?”

“I’ll think on it some,” Ron said.

“I had some good news-bad news today,” Gary observed.

“Oh?” Ron asked.

“The City dropped the lawsuit, but the lawyer cost me more than the water tower,” Gary
said.

“I see what you mean,” Ron said. “Hey why don’t we get Clarence and go riding?”

Ok,” Gary agreed, “You know Ron; I think that Clarence pulled a fast one, that horse is
gentle and won’t answer to the name Salina.”

“Cheer up partner,” Ron said, “Go get your new straw hat and your cowboy guns and
we’ll get some fresh air.”

“I’m in the mood to wear my Black hat from now on,” Gary said, “Only the good guys
wear white hats.”

“We aren’t the good guys?” Ron asked.

“It’s more like we didn’t get caught, at a lot of things,” Gary observed.

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“I wonder what he means by that.” Ron thought.

“Clarence, was this horse really named Salina?” Gary asked.

“That horse didn’t have no name, Gary,” Clarence admitted, “So I gave it one. I guess
you could say that that horse’s name has been Salina for as long as it’s had a name.”

“Why do we have an armed escort Ron?” Gary asked, noticing 4 of the Palmdale Militia
trailing behind in a Hummer.

“Radio chatter, Gar-Bear,” Ron replied.

“What radio chatter?’ Gary perked up.

“A lot of people are unhappy with USA PA II,” Ron said.

“We all are Ron, but it could be worse, they could have banned semi-auto’s,” Gary said.

“That’s just the AWB part of USA PA II,” Ron replied, “No, I’m talking about the whole
USA PA II and the original USA Patriot Act thing.”

“What’s it mean Ron?” Clarence asked.

“I’m not completely sure Clarence, but one of the guys on the radio sounded a lot like
Manny,” Ron observed.

“You think the Pep Boys are involved?” Gary suggested.

“I said sounded like, Gar-Bear,” Ron answered, “Who knows?”

“Clarence, Salina was a mare,” Gary said.

“Yeah, so?” Clarence responded.

“This horse is a gelding,” Gary pointed out.

“Really? How do you tell?” Clarence asked.

“Maybe we ought to give the Pep Boys a call, Ron,” Gary urged.

“No phone calls, but a visit might be in order,” Ron agreed.

“We’re in pretty good shape as a community, right?” Gary asked.

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“I figure we could go for quite a while, even if they cut the utilities,” Ron said. “You know,
220,000 gallons of propane will go a long ways, even in the winter.”

“I was thinking we could recapture the heat those generators produce Ron,” Gary said.

“You sort of went crazy on those generators there Gar-Bear,” Ron observed.

“I know Ronald,” Gary said, “But it’s better to have them and not need them than to
need them and not have them, right?”

“True,” Ron said.

“And as long as I’m on my soapbox, there’s another thing, Ron.” Gary continued. “We
should have connected all of the propane tanks instead of the gasifier output lines.”

“When you’re right, you’re right Gar-Bear,” Ron acknowledged.

“So, let’s make it happen partner,” Gary suggested. “Can you arrange all of that?”

“No problem pal,” Ron said.

“Clarence,” Gary said.

“What?” Clarence replied.

“The difference between a gelding and a mare is …”

It was a snap to re-plumb the propane and Cummins Power put Ron onto the heat ex-
changer people. They connected the heated water to the hot water heaters, eliminating
most of their hot water heater gas usage, when the generators were running. The Pep
Boys agreed to meet with Ron, Clarence and Gary, but they didn’t go into any specifics.
They were from the ‘old school’ and didn’t believe in getting outsiders involved in their
internal affairs. And as far as they were concerned the Palmdale Militia was an outsider
because they were just too public sometimes. The very idea of going on Larry King Live
was ridiculous. Those Palmdale boys put all their business on the street. Besides, the
Pep Boys hadn’t gotten any Presidential Freedom Awards or Distinguished Service
Crosses.

Manny, Moe and Jack had their own agenda and it didn’t include the folks from
Palmdale. They had enough of Bush and his crap and they were going to stir up things
a little on their own.

Tuesday, 02Jan07…

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As was his usual habit, Gary stumbled to the kitchen, got his coffee and headed to the
office for a smoke. He logged into the network and went surfing to see what CNN had to
say. They still used the red banner when they had breaking news and this time it said
something about an attack in Los Angeles. That probably meant he’d have to wait 15
minutes to know what it was about so he clicked on 1stheadlines dot com to avoid the
wait.

The attack was still in progress, but he clicked on a link to LA Attack and learned that
the small remaining group of FEMA folks trying to coordinate the finishing touches on
the rebuilding were under attack from an unknown group at their HQ in downtown. Gary
answered an urgent call of nature and went back to the computer. He tried CNN again
and they had a story posted. It turned out to be the story he’d read on the headlines link,
word for word and he still didn’t know anything. Gary splashed some water on his face,
pulled on his faded denims and golf shirt and headed for Ron’s. Ron was sitting in his
bathrobe at his computer looking at the same story on CNN.

Ron peered at Gary through his bloodshot eyes and asked, “Did you see this Gar-
Bear?”

“That’s what brought me down here in the middle of the night,” Gary said. (It was only
9:30 am)

“You don’t suppose it’s those yahoos from Lancaster do you?” Ron asked.

“Probably, Ronald,” Gary mumbled. “Call the White House.”

“What?” Ron said, “Why?”

“Because they’ll trace the call and know we aren’t involved,” Gary said.

“If you wouldn’t have hired all of the Militia to work for you, we wouldn’t have to prove it
wasn’t us,” Ron complained. “Hello? This is Ron Green and I want to talk to George…
Really??? Well you tell him that the three old geezers from Palmdale are on the phone
and we ain’t got nothing to do with that trouble in LA... What do you mean write him a
letter??? Forget it Lady. Well, Gar-Bear, she said we had to write him a letter.”

“Yeah, I heard,” Gary said. “So write him a letter and tell him he’s uglier than you,” Gary
suggested.

“I can’t do that, he’s the fricking President and he’s already mad at us,” Ron com-
plained.

“Yeah, but the email will have a timestamp on it Ron, and just say that in your opinion
he’s uglier than you. Everyone is allowed an opinion, so what can he do?” Gary
smirked.

285
“I’ll go put in my other eye so I can type,” Ron said.

“But it’s glass, how does that help you to type?” Gary asked.

“It gives me a balanced outlook on life,” Ron cracked.

“That’s probably the eye you were using when you ran the lawn mower over your foot
and cut your toe off,” Gary laughed.

“It was not,” Ron protested, “It’s like I’ve told you 100 times, I cut my toe off when I was
mowing the lawn at 3am because I was drunk and it was too dark to see.”

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 Preparations – Chapter 55 – Reflections

“And I still don’t believe you Ron,” Gary said.

“You write him, and then he’ll know it’s a lie,” Ron said.

“I think we’d better batten down the hatches,” Gary said, “Bush will probably send fed-
eral troops into LA.”

“But we didn’t do anything Gar-Bear,” Ron protested.

“Not yet, no, my friend, not yet,” Gary remarked.

Gary left so that Ron could clean up and get dressed. There really wasn’t a lot wrong
with the country, per se. The economy was in the toilet and it looked to be a while be-
fore it straightened out. At least the price of gold had seemed to stabilize at $1,685. He
thought about converting the gold into a stable currency, but ‘stable currency’ was an-
other of those oxymoron’s. FDR had not so much gotten the US out of the Great De-
pression as had WW II. The economy is so difficult to control and usually when the gov-
ernment tried to do something; it took so long and sometimes didn’t work. Gerald Ford
got it right, but Jimmy Carter got it wrong. Then Reagan had it right, for a while. Clinton
took credit for a good economy during his administration, but if it were so good, why did
Dubya have to cut taxes to stimulate the economy when he took office? That gold down
in the basement would go down in value as the economy improved, just like always.

As far as laws went, the USA Patriot Act I & II were mistakes as was the AWB. It just
seemed like criminals had too many rights and victims too few. But when you thought
about it what had brought that about? The first major criminal rights case was not Mi-
randa, but Gideon followed by Escobedo. Gary bet that many people didn’t know that.
One led to another and finally Miranda. And, California was about the worst of the
states; there were probably more lawyers than cops in California. And everyone
seemed to want to sue everyone else. That’s what happened when the growth of law-
yers, per capita, outstripped the per capita death of lawyers.

Maybe those boys up in Lancaster had it right; maybe it was time to bring the feds back
down to size. But how were they going to do it? That thing back in ‘05 had been a fluke.
A dozen sniper teams started the ball rolling and the Pep Boys kept it rolling, but it was
the Air Force and Army who had wrapped it up. If they did start something, what would
the new, larger Army do? It wasn’t like it was another coup; George W. Bush was the
duly elected President. Still, the idea of waiting 2 more years until a new President took
office was unacceptable. And once the guy was in, what would he or she do, more of
the same? The time to send a message is before the bombs start falling, ask those guys
at Pearl Harbor. Then, when they got a new President, he or she would have the mes-
sage, maybe.

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°

The attack in LA had been the Pep Boys after all. The FEMA people weren’t expecting
any trouble and hadn’t been ready for an attack. The Pep Boys just mowed them down
and hadn’t even stayed around long enough to make sure the feds were all dead. Gary
figured Ron was around by now, so he filled his coffee cup and headed back to discuss
a few things with his friend.

“It was the Pep Boys, Ron. You were right,” Gary said. “I’ve been sitting down there
thinking about a lot of things. It just feels like we need to do something, but I’m not sure
what.”

“We’re a little old to do it ourselves Gary,” Ron noted, “Is it right to get those young peo-
ple involved in something?”

“We are older partner, but if those young people don’t do it, what are they going to end
up with?” Gary asked. “Part of the problem with the current generation is that they’re
spoiled and we’ve given them everything on a silver platter. That is what’s wrong with
Kevin and that is what’s wrong with Amy. The only difference between the two of them
is that Amy is trying to get ahead by going to school. But, they both expect us to take
care of them.”

“With Kevin, it’s more than half Gar, but I know what you mean,” Ron said. “So it’s fair to
get them involved, but involved in what?”

“Think back to ‘05 Ron, we didn’t have a pot to pee in or a window to throw it out of,”
Gary said. “Since we have everything we could possibly use including two tanks and 4
armed Hummers, we could do any awfully good job of covering the Pep Boys’ back, if
nothing else.”

“Those two tanks aren’t anything but bookends Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “The minute you
take them out from under that camo netting, the other guy starts playing by a different
set of rules. Wasn’t it you who talked about fighters and bombers and tanks and how
they had more than we do?”

“That probably applies for the M-2 and Mk-19’s Ron,” Gary agreed, “I guess we’re just
going to have to limit ourselves. But we do have the M203s and the Thumpers, so we
aren’t empty handed.”

“Don’t forget those Claymores, Gar,” Ron reminded him, “They’re one nasty piece of
work. But I disagree with you on the M-2 and Mk-19’s. The Barrett’s use the same am-
mo as the M-2 and a 40mm grenade is a 40mm grenade.”

“You didn’t comment on my statement about following the Pep Boys around and cover-
ing their backs Ron,” Gary said, “Do you disagree with me on that too?”

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“Yes, they’re nice guys, I suppose, but they are undisciplined,” Ron explained. “Our
people are just the opposite. By the way, those MP5/10’s are the SD6 model, were you
aware of that?”

“No I wasn’t,” Gary said, “Someone asked me and I said they didn’t have suppressors.”

“Suppressors and the semi-auto/3-round burst/full auto trigger group,” Ron said. “Those
10mm pistols are a handful, though.”

“With my hands like they are, I’m just going to stick with my Super Match and PT1911,”
Gary remarked, “Assuming we see any action.”

“Funny, I thought you had gotten partial to the .50 caliber,” Ron said with ‘that look’.

“600 yards,” Gary said. “Best shot I ever made.”

“You admit it then?” Ron asked.

“Admit what?” Gary replied, “I only admit that the best shot I ever made was a 600-yard
shot.”

“Never mind. You know we’ve always been motivated by defending ourselves, where
does that fit into this discussion? And don’t cop out by saying the best defense is a good
offense.”

“It is and that’s been our approach in the past,” Gary pointed out. “And it worked, too.
That little attack we staged with Roy and the others firing on the compound proved the
block wall isn’t any protection. The .30 caliber slugs penetrated the wall and the .50 cal-
iber rounds knocked out sections of block. That block wall might be good to hide behind,
but it’s no protection. We have to keep the fighting away from this compound Ronald.”

“What’s gotten into you Gar-Bear?” Ron asked, confused.

“I don’t know buddy, I suppose I’ve been hiding the fact that the whole thing scares me
to death by clowning around,” Gary guessed out loud. “We just got lucky when we did
the bridges, you know. We guessed right on the extra weight, but what if they’d inspect-
ed the trailers? They would have caught us red-handed.”

“There’s always an element of luck in most everything you do in life Gar-Bear,” Ron
said.

“True. But we can’t just sit around and hope that this country gets straightened out ei-
ther buddy,” Gary said, “We’ve got to do something.”

“I seem to remember that’s where this discussion began a half hour ago,” Ron said,

289
“What do you propose to do?”

“As fragile as the country is at the moment, it wouldn’t take much for people like the Pep
Boys to stage a full scale revolution,” Gary commented, “All they need is an excuse, so
why don’t we give them an excuse?”

“Like what?” Ron asked.

“Like let’s take the power down ourselves,” Gary said, “Only this time, let’s do more than
shoot out a few insulators. It would work better if the power were down for a week than
for a few hours.”

“Doesn’t that just make us terrorists, plain and simple?” Ron responded.

“Terrorists strike at people and frighten them Ronald,” Gary said, “We’ve always been
careful not to hurt people so I guess it makes us Freedom Fighters, not terrorists.”

“Or insurgents, like those Iraqis who were just trying to drive us out of Iraq,” Ron dryly
observed. “What are we going to call ourselves, The Popular Front for the Liberation of
America?”

“PFLA?” Gary made the acronym, “Why not, it has a ring to it. And old George will think
we’re Muslim Extremists.”

And thus began the 2nd American Revolution. It wasn’t about rebuilding the ship of
state; it was more about scraping off the barnacles that had accumulated on the hull
over the past 230 years. Even freedom has it limits. There wasn’t anything wrong with
the Constitution, it was a dynamic document, but it was necessarily vague in places and
it addressed the needs of a new nation being formed 230 years before.

In attempting to add specificity to that vagueness, and apply it to modern times, the
courts and Congress had created some unintended consequences. Criminals didn’t
have more rights than victims; both had exactly the same rights. And, that noble institu-
tion of Freedom of Speech wasn’t limitless; you couldn’t yell fire in a theater if there
weren’t a fire. And was it right to try a case in the media and make movies about the
case even before the trial began?

The military called unintended casualties Collateral Damage and in every conflict since
the beginning of time there had been some collateral damage. Taking down the power
might put some people who depended on electricity for respirators or such at risk, but
not if they were prepared. I don’t know about you, but if I were on a life support system
that depended upon electricity to keep me alive, I’d go without things just to make sure I
had a little generator sitting in the back yard or on my balcony in case the lights went
out. And, even if I were on MediCal, I’d fudge a little on my prescriptions, refilling them a

290
couple days early every month, and build up a little supply of critical drugs; or get some
physicians samples to tide me over, just in case.

Who was to blame for the state the country was in? The big corporations exported jobs
even though there was unemployment and just added to unemployment all for the sake
of a couple of extra dollars on their bottom lines. And, who really cared if Martha Stew-
art was a crook? Fine her 10 times the amount she’d saved on that insider trading and
publicize that; it made a lot more sense than spending millions to convict her of the
crime. The IRS had it right; they only prosecuted cases where they were 99% sure to
get convictions and they publicized the hell out of those cases. For every conviction,
they publicized, they got hundreds of people voluntarily filing delinquent returns for fear
of being arrested and tried. The job of the IRS was to collect revenue, not to put people
in jail.

And, speaking about jails, America had been building prisons at a phenomenal rate.
Why? Because the system fostered criminal behavior, starting with unemployment and
welfare and an inadequate educational system. There wouldn’t be any drug dealers if
there weren’t customers for their wares. The classless American society had three dis-
tinct classes, the rich and powerful, an indescribable middle class and the poor. Upward
mobility was the American dream, but it happened to so few. Usually it was the down-
ward mobility that was observed with every tax cut sucking more from the middle class
and moving them ever closer to being poor.

Gary had a lot of gold, but he hadn’t earned it, not really. He had just gone to get that
Hot Fudge Sundae at Dairy Queen and happened to overhear a conversation. And, af-
ter that, he couldn’t spend money as fast as he made it. Even though the gold lay
stacked in a little cubicle under his home earning no interest, he’d ended up with more
money than he’d started with. 90 ingots of gold at $1,685 per ounce were worth over
$60 million.

08Jan07…

In what appears to be a repeat of the downing of electrical power lines and substations
by the late General Wesley Clark, numerous transmission line towers and substations
were knocked out last night by a group identifying itself as the Popular Front for the Lib-
eration of America or PFLA. The White House has yet to offer comment. Stay tuned to
CNN for further news concerning this event.

“Any trouble?” Gary asked.

“No.” Derek replied, “But are you sure this is the best way to go about this?”

“Not at all Derek,” Gary responded, “But we had to start somewhere and this seemed
like the most innocuous approach.”

“I hope that you’re right Dad,” Derek said.

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“Me too, son. Me too,” Gary agreed.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 1 – Small Steps

“Gary, what happened to the electricity?” Clarence asked.

“Clarence, some of the boys and girls blew up some transmission line towers and elec-
trical substations,” Gary replied.

“You mean we’re behind this?” Clarence asked, shocked.

“Yes, Clarence, we are the PFLA now,” Gary announced.

“Are you sure this is the best way to go about this?” Clarence asked.

“No Clarence, but we can’t just sit on our butts and hope everything turns out right,”
Gary replied.

“Jeez Gary, this is pretty extreme,” Clarence observed, “Even for you.”

“That’s why Ron and I left you out of the decision my friend,” Gary explained, “He and I
will take the fall if it doesn’t work out.”

“Ron is in on this too?” Clarence reacted. “Well hell, we’re the three old geezers to
some and the Three Amigos to others, but it’s always been the three of us, so count me
in. What are you going to do next?”

“Buy up a bunch of used pickups with campers and see America Clarence,” Gary re-
plied. “It doesn’t take a lot of explosives to take down a transmission tower and there
are lots of them between here and the east coast.”

“Do we have enough explosives and stuff to do that?” Clarence wanted to know.

“Not really, but there’s a lot of C-4 up at Ft. Irwin and down at 29 Palms,” Gary ob-
served. “I think we’ll give them back their tanks and steal the C-4 and detonators in-
stead.”

“But, sooner or later, they’ll declare martial law and start putting up roadblocks and us-
ing explosive sniffing dogs and stuff,” Clarence suggested.

“Probably, but we’ll just have to try and stay a step ahead of them,” Gary said. “Even the
experts agree that there’s nothing that the cops and government can do to stop a small
determined group. And, no team will know what any other team is doing, so even if a
team gets caught, it won’t destroy the whole operation.”

“We’re going to run the operation from here?” Clarence asked.

“Sure why not?” Gary said. “If it’s good enough for the Muslim Extremists, it’s good

293
enough for the PFLA. We’ll use Internet cafes or portable computers and email. That
Bible code works pretty well, especially if we make each verse represent a particular
unrelated message. And, we can send some teams out to dead drop the explosives
ahead of time so no one will have explosives in their pickups for any longer than need-
ed.”

“You missed your calling Gary,” Clarence grinned.

“No I didn’t, but I can read a newspaper and a library book, pal,” Gary said, “You don’t
have to be smart to do something like this, you just need to be able to read books,
newspapers and go to the movies. And, never do things the same way twice.”

Derek hated to see the tanks go, but he hadn’t really wanted one in the first place. It had
been one of his Dad’s harebrained ideas, not his. All he’d said was that he missed his
tank and the next thing you knew, his Dad had paid Roy to steal 2 of them. Not all of his
Dad’s ideas were harebrained, but he had his share. This latest idea all hinged on the
US population blaming the government for failing to be able to maintain the peace. If
there was anything about this whole scheme that would make it work; it was probably
the PFLA name. People would get angry over them blowing up stuff, but they’d get even
angrier with the government for being unable to stop it. At least, that was the theory.

“How did they make out on explosives?” Gary asked.

“They almost got caught returning the tanks, but they got a fair amount of C-4 and deto-
nators,” Ron said.

“Is a fair amount enough to do the whole job?” Gary inquired.

“Roy said we’d have to have more before it was all over,” Ron reported.

“Once we start this thing full time, they will be guarding those explosive dumps like no-
body’s business,” Gary opined. “Maybe we’d better send the guys out and get every-
thing we need before we go full throttle. They can dead drop the explosives in regional
caches and it will cut down on transportation risks.”

“What are we going to do if someone gets caught?” Ron asked.

“Maybe just charge in like George Armstrong Custer and rescue them; hell, I don’t
know, we’ll play that by ear,” Gary replied.

“Well sooner or later, someone is going to get suspicious of 2 guys riding around in a
pickup,” Ron suggested.

“I’ve given that a little thought, Ron, how many of the Palmdale Militia are married?”

294
Gary asked.

“Most of them, why?” Ron said.

“Well, a couple is less suspicious than two guys, so how about they travel as couples?”
Gary suggested.

“I don’t know if the people would want their spouses involved Gar-Bear, and what about
the single people?” Ron commented.

“The single people can drag along a girlfriend or boyfriend and the spouses are already
up to their eyebrows in this thing,” Gary said, “They can even take the kids along, and it
will just make for a better cover.”

“You have an answer for everything don’t you?” Ron retorted.

“Not hardly, but if it was me out there, Sharon would want to be along,” Gary replied.

02Mar07…

“We’re as ready as we’re ever going to be Gar-Bear,” Ron said.

“Good. Get everyone to Kansas City and have them radiate out from there,” Gary di-
rected. “Are the pickups all equipped with Ham radios and the weapons caches and
everything they need?”

“Everyone has weapons, food, radios, computers and codes,” Ron summarized, “Like I
said, we’re as ready as we’re ever going to get.”

“Did you get that motor home all fixed up so we can run the operation from on the
road?” Gary asked.

“Dig the wax out butthead, I said we’re ready,” Ron responded, exasperated.

“Let’s do it,” Gary said.

Since Damon was a professional truck driver, he got elected to drive the motor home
and provide security for the three old geezers. They weren’t exactly helpless, they had
their .50 and .30 caliber rifles, 3 MP5/10SD6,’s and 3 M-79’s together with an adequate
supply of munitions all safely tucked away behind false walls. Their Winchesters were
locked in a gun rack, unloaded, and in plain sight. A pickup pulled a horse trailer with
Salina and the other horses; it was all part of the illusion. The motor home had been
outfitted with a complete communications shack, condensed into desk unit. They had
even signed up for a satellite based 24/7 internet connection for the motor home and
used an inertial navigation system and a computer to keep the dish pointed in the right
direction at all times. Talk about elaborate!

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Damon wanted to drive the motor home like a truck driver, stopping only as required by
DOT rules. The three old geezers were not in any hurry, however, and this looked like a
perfect time to see the sights. It took them nearly 3 weeks to get to Kansas City. By that
time, everyone else had arrived in KC and spread out to do their dirty work. The covers
were working perfectly. A family would pull into a campground or motel, and the militia
member would take a motorcycle, recover the explosives, drop the target and return to
his or her family. Then a cell phone hookup to AOL and off went the report in the double
Bible code, with no one the wiser.

None of the militiamen went in anything resembling a straight line and their paths criss-
crossed any number of times. No one was in a hurry and they took time to visit amuse-
ment parks and all of the usual tourist traps. For every target, they had several alterna-
tives and when a grid section came down, it often took down other sections with it. They
just putted along, taking out a target here and a target there and generally keeping the
grids down. Some would be brought up for a time only to go down again.

Two groups were reacting to the crisis that the three old geezers were orchestrating, the
government and militia groups all over the country. The government invoked the provi-
sions of the USA Patriot Act I & II and sent the military all over the country, trying to pro-
tect the power lines. That was fruitless because of all of the alternative targets; and, it
wasn’t as if it took a large quantity of explosives to do considerable damage. Gary Ron
and Clarence were having a good time, too. They were visiting all of the tourist sites in
each state, essentially driving in a big circle around the Midwest.

That motor home had a lot of modifications. It had an oversized alternator and an extra
battery. It had a diesel-powered generator that they could use when they were parked
for an extended time. The large bed had been removed from the bedroom and a single
bed substituted to make room for the extra equipment. They stayed in a 4-star motel
one night and a dump the next, avoiding creating any sort of pattern. Sometimes they
stayed in a location for several days and stabled the horses to let them rest or they took
a day or two off themselves to rest. Gary translated the emails and marked the locations
on a set of topographical maps he had on a laptop computer. And those laptops? Con-
trol-Alternate F-9 invoked a disk wiping utility that erased the files and quickly overwrote
the HDD. They hadn’t had to use the feature yet; it was one of those just in case things
that Gary was so big on.

“I never thought we’d pull this off partner,” Ron gushed, “But man was I wrong; some of
those local groups are starting to blame to the government just like you thought they
would. And the White House is just plain going crazy trying to stop us.”

Just as Gary had predicted several militia groups decided that now was a good time to
get back at the Federal Government for perceived wrongs. One group out of Northern
California decided that blowing the Federal Western Headquarters building in San Fran-

296
cisco sky high would be a good way to even the scales of justice. They had tons of sto-
len high explosives, and loaded it into a commercial delivery truck for a paper company
that delivered paper once a week to the delivery entrance that was in the sub-basement
one floor above the underground parking structure. It was located right next to the
freight elevators so the delivery people could have access to the offices they delivered
to.

Unknown to the Federal Government, one of the members of the Golden State Militia
was a driver for that company, and had kept his nose clean so he could strike a blow
against the Great Oppressor. On his next scheduled delivery date, he drove up to the
gate, and was waved through by the rent-a-cop without even a glance at his truck.
Complacency and low pay combined to cause the total destruction of the Federal Build-
ing. The driver knew it was a one-way trip, but had a relative that died at Waco, and had
always wanted to get even for his death. Once he pulled up to the delivery entrance, he
reached up under the dash, and pushed a button, and a ton of C-4 exploded.

The freight elevators were located adjacent to the internal skeleton of the building, and
the shaped charge expanded in a hemispherical pattern, destroying 4 columns and
weakening 4 more. Between the explosion and the rubble, there was nothing-
identifiable left of the truck or the driver. This time there was no escape for the Federal
agents in the building, since it was 10:00 on Monday morning, the normal time for direc-
tor’s meetings. San Francisco was the head office for the entire Western District. Not
only were thousands of Federal Officers, Jack Booted Thugs, and Federal Workers
killed, but also the explosion or the resulting fire destroyed every file in every office. The
explosion also damaged several adjacent buildings, and people in the street were in-
jured and killed, but the Militia had their revenge.

The reaction by the Golden State Militia hadn’t been foreseen and like the Pep Boys,
they had gone a little overboard, but the three old geezers took it in stride. All they had
done was pulled the pin and tossed the grenade, as it were. It had exploded all by itself.
No doubt there were others around the country gearing up their groups to do more of
the same. The PFLA might be responsible for a very small amount of collateral damage,
but they had thus far avoided injuring anyone directly. If the action by the Golden State
Militia was any example of the sentiments in the US the snowball was rolling downhill
and gathering both size and momentum.

“How about we make a run over to Louisville?” Clarence suggested.

“Sure, why not?” Gary said, “What’s in Louisville?”

“It’s the home of the Louisville Slugger, Gary,” Clarence said, “But I don’t suppose you
know what a Louisville Slugger is, huh?”

“Of course I do,” Gary joked, “It’s a guy from Louisville, Kentucky who’s had one too
many drinks. Or maybe, it’s a baseball bat.”

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“You’re probably right on both counts Gar-Bear,” Ron said. “Damon, point this here mo-
tor home towards Louisville, we’re going to watch a bar fight.”

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 2 – Bourbon Country

Touring the distilleries around Kentucky made a perfect cover for the three men. Well,
almost perfect, none of them drank, but Damon obliged and sampled the various prod-
ucts. Not too much, of course, he was the designated driver, as in the only one who
knew how to drive the motor home. The horses were boarded in Louisville during this
detour.

15May07…

The families had finally made it to the east and west coasts. Their 2½-month odyssey
over, they returned to Moon Shadows, tired, but surprisingly intact. Nothing much had
changed in their absence and Chris and Matt had kept the generators serviced and run-
ning. The people who had traveled west from KC had begun arriving back a couple of
weeks earlier; one or two couples at a time. Since they were all on the payroll of the
Homeowners Association there were no employers to report their lengthy absence. The
three old geezers arrived the 19th of May and the last couples from the east coast runs
over the following week.

01Jun07…

“Did we get away with it or are the feds breathing down our necks?” Ron asked.

“Ron, we got away with it,” Clarence replied, “I never had no doubt.”

“CNN says that Bush has posted a $25 million reward for information leading to the ar-
rest and conviction of the people behind this atrocity,” Gary reported. “Maybe I should
turn myself in and collect the reward.”

“Butthead,” Ron said, “You know perfectly well you are only entitled to one federal re-
ward.”

“Come on you two, this Ron and Gary show gets a little old after a while,” Clarence said.

“Ok Clarence,” Gary agreed. “Do you agree with Clarence that we pulled it off, Ron?’

“I guess we won’t know until the FBI comes calling Gar-Bear,” Ron answered.

“The power is back on already guys,” Clarence reminded them.

“The idea never was to take the power down permanently Clarence, it was to take old
Dubya down,” Gary said. “And from the looks of things that’s working well. That bomb-
ing in San Francisco started a chain reaction. I don’t know who those people were, but it
sure did get the ball rolling. You know, we should keep that 10mm stuff out in plain
sight.”

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“Are you nuts?” Ron snapped, “Never mind, I know the answer to that question.”

“I’m serious,” Gary said, “The whole LA County Sheriff’s Department knows we stripped
those bodies, so what’s the point in hiding the weapons? It’s the other stuff that we have
that we should be hiding.”

“They would have picked those weapons up by now if they were going to,” Ron disa-
greed.

“Or, maybe they’re just giving us enough rope to hang ourselves,” Clarence suggested.

“Clarence, we did that when we picked up those MP5’s,” Gary said.

“What did you expect?” Ron asked. “You only sent 2 dozen people to take on 100.”

“We’d have been all right if they hadn’t used the handguns,” Gary said, “I guess it’s just
spilt milk, but leave the 10mm stuff out and put everything else away.”

“Nothing like closing the barn door after the horse runs away,” Clarence observed.

“Oh that’s right, Clarence,” Gary observed (sarcastically), “I forgot that you were an ex-
pert on horses.”

02Jun07…

“Gary, get your butt over to the OP,” Ron said, “We have visitors. I think it might be the
feds.”

“Darn; and I said to put the 10mm stuff out in plain view,” Gary responded, “I’ll be a mi-
nute.”

“No problem, partner, I overruled you and we went back to the shotguns and .22’s,” Ron
said.

“I’ll be right there,” Gary said.

Breathlessly, Gary asked, “All right, who do we have down there?”

“USMS,” Ron said, “Served papers on the Association.”

“What kind of papers?”

“I won’t know until I see them partner,” Ron said.

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“Hmm, what’s a show cause order, Gary?” Ron asked reading the document.

“It’s basically contempt citation, why?” Gary asked, “Who is behind the subpoena?”

“It looks like OSHA,” Ron said. “It says here that an officer of the Association must ap-
pear and show cause why the Association should not be held in contempt of court for
refusing to respond to a Subpoena Duces Tecum issued by the Occupation Safety and
Health Administration concerning our concertina wall topping.”

“Man George is bringing out his big guns isn’t he,” Gary laughed.

“What does it all mean?” Ron asked, “It sounds serious.”

“OSHA wanted some information and we didn’t respond timely so they took us to court
to get the information,” Gary explained. “They are probably saying that the barbed wire
is a danger to the employees’ health.”

“Is it?” Ron asked.

“No, but it means hiring a lawyer and spending time in court pal,” Gary explained. “Pure
harassment.”

“Are you sure? Ron asked.

“Go to the OSHA website and search for barbed wire, pal,” Gary laughed. “Some guy
had an accident with a 250 gallon propane tank and the gate was locked so he had to
go over a barbed wire topped fence. The fine was for the gate being locked, not for the
barbed wire. OSHA just uses scare tactics, it ain’t no big deal.”

“Ok, if you say so Gar,” Ron reluctantly agreed.

“And you were right about those guns, Ron, thanks,” Gary continued. “We’d better get
ready for a no knock search. Are they well hidden?”

“Heh, heh, heh, man, they couldn’t find them with gun sniffing dogs,” Ron chuckled.
“You can’t even find them and you know every nook and cranny in the whole com-
pound.”

“I’ll take that dare,” Gary smiled.

Gary got his guard dog, Missy, and started looking. He walked her around the tract as
he usually did, but other than everyone having removed their grass and gone with de-
sert landscaping using pea gravel, saw nothing that gave him a clue. Missy was ex-
hausted from the 4-block walk so he took her home and headed to the water tower
compound. Things had certainly changed here. Roy was busy stacking the concrete
block over in the corner using a forklift. Gary flagged Roy down to find out what was go-

301
ing on.

“Roy what’s with moving everything?” Gary asked.

“Most everyone has gone to desert landscaping and Ron suggested that we clean this
area up and do the same,” Roy explained.

“We didn’t have that much block when we went out on the road, did we?” Gary asked.

“No, Ron ordered more block Gary,” Roy said, “He said the fence wouldn’t stop a bullet
and that we were going to double the fence and fill the space in between with concrete.”

“He did, did he?” Gary replied, “I’m going to have to have a talk with Ronald McDonald.
Were you in charge of hiding the guns?”

“No Derek did that, why?” Roy wanted to know.

“Do you know where he put them?” Gary asked.

“Yeah,” Roy smiled, “But Ron said not to tell you. He said to let you find them on your
own.”

Gary let Roy get back to work and went to the trailer park to have a look around. With all
of the shot-up trailers gone, the park was spacious and looked nice. Several of the mili-
tia members were busy putting in desert landscaping here too, he noticed. His feet were
killing him, so he headed back to the housing tract. He noticed that some of the militia
people were busy removing the sod from Ron and Linda’s and Chris and Patti’s front
yards.

“Ronald, what in the hell is going on?” Gary asked, storming into the OP.

“I found that subpoena in the papers they collected while we were gone Gary,” Ron re-
plied, ignoring Gary’s demand.

“Fine, Ron, now what the hell is going on?” Gary again demanded.

“Did you find the guns?” Ron asked.

“As a matter of fact, no. What’s with all the landscaping? And Roy said you told him that
we were going to change the fence,” Gary said.

“The .30 cal punched through the wall and the .50 cal blew out sections Gar-Bear, so I
figured we’d put in a second wall and fill the gap with concrete,” Ron explained.

“Roy already explained that,” Gary noted, “He also said you told him not to tell me
where Derek hid the guns. Are you taking over here?”

302
“You said, ‘don’t bother me with the small crap’, so I didn’t,” Ron replied.

“But this must be costing thousands,” Gary objected.

“More like tens of thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands, Gar-Bear,” Ron
grinned.

“Who is paying for all of this?” Gary asked.

“Why you are of course,” Ron replied, with a straight face.

“Clarence involved in this little plot too?” Gary asked.

“I do believe that you sound a little paranoid, Gar-Bear,” Ron grinned, again.

“Just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you Ronald,” Gary
repeated the tired old cliché.

“I hired an attorney to make an appearance on that show cause order,” Ron said.

“We just got it yesterday,” Gary protested. “I was going to handle that myself.”

“That’s what I was afraid of,” Ron replied. “That’s why I hired the lawyer.”

“So, where are the guns?” Gary asked.

“I don’t know. And if I did know, I wouldn’t tell you, Gar-Bear,” Ron said. “Look it wasn’t
me running my mouth off on Larry King Live, or Clarence, for that matter. I just said,
‘You bet’ and Clarence acted as if he didn’t know that Jesse Jackson had been given
the Medal of Freedom. You’re the one with the bullseye painted on his back, so just lay
back and let us run the show for a while. What you don’t know can’t hurt us.”

“Ok, but I don’t have to like it,” Gary said, rose and left.

What Ron had said was true. Gary had intentionally made himself the target to keep
everyone else in the clear. He was the one with all of the money in the basement. Dou-
bling up the fence made a lot of sense, although he couldn’t see the benefit in switching
to desert landscaping.

It didn’t occur to him that they used more water to keep the lawns alive than to flush the
toilets and for cooking, drinking and bathing. Ron had topped off the propane tanks, too.
Based on his calculations, Ron figured that they needed another 200,000-gallon pro-
pane tank to have propane equivalent to the water supply. He had contracted with
AmeriGas to install the tank, but hadn’t mentioned it to Gary. He had also contracted to

303
have a septic field installed across the road, large enough to handle Moon Shadows
and the trailer park at full capacity.

The field was to be buried deep, too. That way if some developer came along and built
on the site, he wouldn’t disturb the septic field. The government could cut them off from
gas, water, sewer and garbage collection any time they decided to up the ante. And let
them search for the guns, Derek and Roy assured him that they couldn’t be found, peri-
od.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 3 – A Whole New Game

Ron hadn’t missed the mark by much, either with regard to the new propane tank or the
feds upping the ante. AmeriGas recommended a 220,000-gallon tank, effectively dou-
bling their capacity to 440,000 gallons, because those generators collectively used a lot
of propane. On Sunday, June 10th, the ATF showed up with search warrants looking for
illegal firearms. They had ground searching radars, magnetometers and about every
high tech gadget that existed, but they didn’t find a single illegal firearm. Chalk one up
for the good guys. They even strapped Gary up to a polygraph and asked him where
the guns were hidden. Gary said “I don’t know” and the polygraph said he was telling
the truth. They should have asked him if there were any illegal guns, but you know how
some of these federal employees are.

The new tank was so large that it had to be constructed in place. AmeriGas finished the
tank on June 25th, the same day that the contractor finished filling in the septic field
trenches. On the 26th of June, AmeriGas began to deliver the propane. It took 73 and a
fraction truckloads of propane and stretched into early July before they had the tank
topped off. All of the desert landscaping had been finished off, too. The tract looked
more like it was in Mesa, Arizona than Palmdale, California.

04Jul07…

“It’s a shame that Palmdale outlawed fireworks,” Gary said, “Independence Day won’t
be the same without fireworks. Are you cooking again this year Ron?”

“I thought I’d let Clarence do it this year,” Ron said, “So, we’re having grilled chicken in-
stead of steaks.”

“Suits me, but you’d better grill one for Sharon, partner,” Gary said, “She’ll have a real
hissy if you don’t.”

“We have one thawed out for her, Gar-Bear,” Ron said. “Was I right about the feds?”

“We still have utilities,” Gary observed.

“I was talking about the guns, butthead,” Ron snapped.

“Well, yeah, I guess so, but I feel funny not knowing where the guns are,” Gary said.

“They are chilling out my friend,” Ron replied, telling Gary where the guns were without
telling him. The 220,000-gallon propane tank was cryogenic, e.g., colder than a
witch’s…

“Did the attorney get that Subpoena quashed?” Gary asked.

“Just like you said pal,” Ron answered. “I suppose the utilities will go next.”

305
“How come you doubled the propane capacity?” Gary asked.

“Well, that’s what AmeriGas suggested,” Ron explained. “Matches the water supply.”

“Ron, the water supply is unlimited,” Gary said, “That’s why we have a well. If the feds
drop a bomb on this place, there won’t be anything left but a hole in the ground.”

“They wouldn’t dare,” Ron exclaimed.

“Why not?” Gary asked.

“Because we’re heroes,” Ron said.

“Yeah, right,” Gary said, “Then why are the generators coming on? They’re not sched-
uled to cycle today.”

“Ron, we have a problem,” Roy interrupted. “They cut the utilities.”

“That’s not a problem Roy, we can go a long time on what we have,” Ron barely looked
up.

“But they’ve surrounded the compound with troops,” Roy replied.

“Did you get that tunnel dug between the trailer park and the tank compound?” Ron
asked.

“Sure did,” Roy said.

“Then don’t worry about it,” Ron replied, “Enjoy the picnic.”

“What tunnel?” Gary asked.

“I had Roy dig a tunnel from the tank compound to the trailer park,” Ron explained. “It
also connects to the new armory. We knocked a hole in my section of the block wall to
give us access to the tank compound/park.”

“I thought you we going to put in another wall and fill the gap with concrete,” Gary said.

“We start that tomorrow, but with those troops out there, I guess we’ll have to just fill it
with dirt,” Ron hypothesized.

“You seem pretty laid back for someone surrounded by the US Army,” Gary observed.

“Actually, I think it’s pretty nice of old George to provide us with protection,” Ron said.

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“Fill it in with dirt, huh? Where are you going to get the dirt from?” Gary asked.

“We already have a nice pile of it, but we’ll have more as the tunnel progresses,” Ron
replied. “In fact, I think we may have to build those walls further apart to use up the dirt.”

“I’m confused,” Gary admitted.

“Yeah, I know, Gar-Bear,” Ron laughed, “What’s new?”

“What tunnel?” Gary insisted.

“The one we’re constructing that can’t be detected by ground penetrating radar because
of scattering or clutter,” Ron replied.

“Give me the short version,” Gary said, “Please.”

“Ok, some of the guys read up on ground penetrating radar,” Ron started. “It seems that
under certain conditions, the radar cannot detect tunnels. Part of it has to do with rock
strata and part of it has to do with surface conditions. Anyway, the tunnel between the
trailer park and the tank park can’t be detected because of strata. The tunnel that we
are building out of the compound can’t be detected because we’re taking advantage of
surface conditions.”

“So, you are saying that we can leave any time we want, right?” Gary summarized.

“Not until we finish the fence to dispose of the extra dirt,” Ron said.

“Where does this tunnel come out at?” Gary wanted to know.

“Remember Jan from class?” Ron asked.

“Yes, what does she have to do with it?” Gary said.

“It comes out in her basement,” Ron revealed.

“But, that’s over ½ a mile from here,” Gary protested.

“Closer to ¾ mile Gary, 1,300 yards, give or take,” Ron advised.

“You are digging a 1,300 yard tunnel to the basement of a woman who is married to an
LAPD officer?” Gary shook his head. “Smooth move pal.”

“I believe that the operative term is was, not is, pal. They got divorced.”

“Oh really, I’m looking forward to seeing that hot little number again,” Gary smiled.

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“She put on about 80 pounds, you know,” Ron laughed. “But she’s still pretty.”

“Oh,” Gary replied, the disappointment evident.

17Aug07…

“The tunnel is done,” Ron announced. “And so is the fence.”

“I can’t walk ¾ of a mile partner, so I’ll take your word for it,” Gary said.

Actually, you could detect the tunnel at certain places along its run, especially where it
crossed under the city streets, but you would have had to know where to look. Built
deeply underground, the tunnel was well within the depth range of the ground penetrat-
ing radar units, but the curbing above the tunnel tended to produce scatter. When the
tunnel had been completed a week earlier, Roy and some of the militia went up to the
Desert Aire Golf Course and ‘borrowed’ an electric golf cart. Shaped like an oval, the
tunnel was 8’ wide at the base and 6’ high at the ceiling and was lined to prevent a col-
lapse. They had built the second block wall 7’ in from the original block wall and the dirt
had worked out almost perfectly.

“Can you ride ¾ of a mile?” Ron asked.

“Ride? Sure,” Gary responded.

“Come on then,” Ron said, “And you can see your old sweetie.”

Ron led Gary to the tank park and into a ‘tool shed’. He released a latch and the work-
bench slid back to reveal a stairway. They descended the circular stairway about 30’ to
a small room. A tunnel went directly south and another stairway descended even fur-
ther. Ron pointed out that the armory was under the new propane tank at the end of the
tunnel and that the tunnel to Jan’s was about halfway between the tank park and the
trailer park, under the curbing. To get to it, they had to descend to the trailer park tunnel
another 45’ down.

“Why all the red light bulbs?” Gary asked, “We running a cat house?”

“Night vision,” Ron replied, “Like in the movies.”

The tunnel was definitely not the place to be if you suffered from claustrophobia. It was
dimly lit and gave one that closed in feeling. Gary noticed that the tunnel appeared to
slope down and then back up. The ride to the room near Jan’s house took a few
minutes and when they arrived, there was another staircase. Gary didn’t count the
steps, but there were a lot of them. When they got to the top, Ron pulled on a pan-
el/door and they exited the staircase through a closet into a basement.

308
“Jan, are you decent?” Ron called out.

“Only when I have to be Ron,” Jan replied.

“I thought that there weren’t any basements in Palmdale,” Gary said.

“We built this for Jan, Gar-Bear and put her washer and dryer down here so it looks like
a laundry room,” Ron explained. “It’s only about 12’ square.”

“Gary, long time no see, how’s Kathy?” Jan asked.

“A distant and not too fond memory Jan,” Gary replied.

“I told you that you’d be sorry,” Jan said.

“You and everybody else, Jan,” Gary acknowledged. “So Ronald, now what?”

“We have a closed van in Jan’s garage, Gar,” Ron explained, “So we can go anywhere
we want. I put Jan on the payroll to drive us around whenever we want.”

“Coffee?” Jan asked.

“Part of the service?” Gary asked.

“The beginning and end of the service Gary,” Jan said giving him one of ‘those looks’.

“I didn’t mean…” Gary started to say.

“Yes you did,” Jan said, “Ron’s told me all about your escapades with Kathy and Marie.”

“Thanks, pal” Gary said, giving Ron the evil eye.

They visited for a while and returned to the tunnel. When they got back to the north end,
Gary made it up the first 45’ and sat down to rest. He decided this would be a good time
to check out the armory. The armory turned out to be circular and was directly below the
220,000-gallon propane tank. It had a domed ceiling to support the weight of the tank
sitting above. However, the tank had been constructed so that most of the weight rested
on the outer rim of the tank, alleviating the need for the ceiling to do more than support
a fraction of the weight.

“Where’s the ammo?” Gary asked.

“Under the floor,” Ron replied.

“When are we going out and raising hell, partner?” Gary asked.

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“Tonight too soon?” Ron asked back.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 4 – The Boy’s Night’s Out

“I think I’ll take one of these MP5’s,” Gary said, “Hope I don’t have to use the pistol,
though. By the way, where are we going?”

“They have another CP set up at the Mall,” Clarence said, “Derek and the others are al-
ready in place, just waiting for us to show up.”

“I get tired of going to the Mall,” Gary said, “Can’t we find some other place to hit them?”

“You haven’t been out of the housing tract since May, except to visit with Jan this morn-
ing and you’ve never been on a raid at the Mall,” Ron pointed out.

“So, are we going to surround them and kill them all off? Boring,” Gary responded.

“One of these days, Gar; one of these days,” Ron repeated the all too common (joking)
threat.

“Are you sure it was 80 pounds Ron? She didn’t look that bad to me,” Gary commented.

“All of your taste is in your mouth,” Ron laughed.

When they arrived at the Target store just down the street from the Mall, Jan parked the
van and the 3 men slipped quietly over to the fire station. From what Gary could see,
there weren’t many men at the CP, maybe 9 or 10. Gary didn’t even hear the rifles go
off, but suddenly the men went down like they’d been hit with sledgehammers. A couple
of militiamen checked the bodies, but didn’t take the firearms, leading Gary to believe
that the people only had M9’s. They went into the tent and came out with a briefcase.
Gary, Ron, and Clarence walked back to Target and got into the van.

“How’d it go?” Jan asked.

“Good guys 10, bad guys zip,” Clarence replied.

“Boring,” Gary said.

“Aw, didn’t Gary get to shoot his whittle pop gun?” Jan baby talked.

“I could have taken out the whole bunch Jan,” Gary said.

“We were just there to observe, Jan,” Ron explained.

“I’m sure you could have Gar,” Jan said, winking at Ron.

“He probably could have Jan, Ron said, “Gary is quite the marksman. Killed a guy at
600 yards.”

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Jan looked at Gary, sizing him up. 600 yards, huh? The only shot she had ever heard
of, that had involved a shooting at 600 yards, was what’s his name. Well, Gary slipped
up a notch or two in her esteem, but he still had a ways to go. At least good old Gar had
never hit on her. Of course when they knew each other, she was 75 pounds lighter and
probably intimidated him. Besides, she’d been married at the time and her husband car-
ried a gun. She figured that the gun didn’t scare Gary, nor did the fact that she was mar-
ried. Yep, it was probably the way she looked at 120 pounds.

They arrived back at Jan’s and she parked the van in the garage. The three men
thanked her and headed for the tunnel to return to the housing tract. They left the guns
in the armory and returned to the OP.

“I wonder what kind of papers they got?” Gary remarked.

“Probably just the usual requisitions and the like,” Ron suggested, “It was only a com-
pany HQ.”

Meanwhile, the successful attack on the Federal Building in San Francisco gave others
ideas. An ex-SEAL who owned a security company in California didn’t lose any sleep
when 3 members of the “gang of five” bit the dust. He had acquired some hot Intel that
the other 2 members were going clubbing in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco
Friday and Saturday, including the bars they were stopping at. Steve had to smile, be-
cause the news of their deaths in these clubs would kill any chance the DNC would
have of making them into Martyrs.

He knew exactly the person to do it too. She was an ex-Assassin who worked for vari-
ous Federal agencies when they needed someone quietly killed. She would be perfect
for this assignment, because she could fit right in. Matter of fact, she made Rosie
O’Donnell look like Sandra Bullock! Her code name was Big Mama, and her cover was
as a member of a notorious Dyke Biker gang called Dykes On Bikes.

Their vests had DOB emblazoned on the back with skull and crossbones. She rode a
Volkswagen Trike and always wore leathers with her ample cleavage hanging out. Ste-
ve knew how to contact her, and she called him back on a secure cellular phone, and
he gave her the assignment. She asked him a question, and he agreed that her way
was better.

The next night Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer were at the Pink Pagoda without
their Secret Service agents, since no men were allowed. Diane wasn’t too keen about
ditching their protection, but figured the .38 special she carried in her purse would be
sufficient. She’d heard a lot about these bars by her friend Barbara, who frequented
them every time she was in San Francisco. They had several drinks when the roar of

312
choppers could be heard outside if you were close enough to the door to hear it over the
screaming disco-funk music.

Suddenly the Dykes on Bikes walked in, and the floor cleared. While they were more
than welcome, no one wanted to mess with them. After they commandeered the best
seats in the house, Big Mamma put her plan into action. Several of the DOBs went on
the prowl for “girlfriends”. One grabbed Barbara and Big Mama grabbed Diane. All of a
sudden a slow song came on, and Big Momma pulled Diane close. When no one could
see, a little needle flicked out of her ring, and she embedded it into the Senator. Her
cries were muffled by Big Mama’s ample bosom, and when the song ended, she let her
gently slump to the floor, saying “I guess my date’s had too much to drink.” So she
switched dates with the other DOB member, and repeated the process. Meanwhile the
Bouncers recognized the Senator and tried to revive her, and then called the paramed-
ics while they did CPR on her. 2 minutes later, Barbara joined her on the floor, and the
DOB’s split the scene shortly thereafter.

The San Francisco Chronicle ran a front page story the next day about Boxer and Fein-
stein in the hospital with an unknown illness after clubbing in the Tenderloin district, with
very embarrassing and revealing pictures of them carrying on at the bar.

A week later, the Chronicle ran an update that both Senators had to be admitted to a
Nursing home in a coma and on a respirator. Their doctors did not expect them to re-
cover, and they didn’t know the cause of their mystery illness. Big Momma disappeared,
and was never heard from again. A whole team of Secret Service agents was terminat-
ed the same day because they couldn’t turn up a useful lead, and were charged with
dereliction of duty because they let the two Senators out of their sight. Their excuses fell
on deaf ears, and they realized they were lucky to be alive, and decided to retire quietly
and find another line of work.

The agents had heard, by way of their friends on the White House detail, that The Boss
was gunning for a group in Palmdale, California. It wasn’t San Francisco, but the
weather in southern California even beat the weather in San Francisco so they decided
to approach the folks in Palmdale. The problem was that The Boss had ringed the sur-
vivalist community in with a company of soldiers. The inside word was that the group
was responsible for that hit on the CP at the Mall, so they settled in to wait for one of the
group to appear. They had pictures of the three old men who supposedly ran the opera-
tion.

18Aug07…

“Someone attacked Boxer and Feinstein last night,” Gary announced when he entered
the OP.

“Kill them?” Ron asked hopefully.

313
“No, they’re in the hospital,” Gary replied. “I read the Chronicle once in a while, too. It
said that they were in the hospital with an unknown illness after clubbing in the Tender-
loin district, with very embarrassing and revealing pictures of them carrying on at the
bar.”

“Couldn’t have happen to a more deserving couple,” Ron laughed.

“So what was in those papers they picked up last night?” Gary asked. “Requisitions like
you figured?”

“I wish,” Ron said, “It would have made life a whole lot simpler.”

“What do you mean by that crack?” Gary asked.

“There are orders here to reestablish the relocation camps,” Ron said.

“There aren’t any refugees, so why would they need relocation camps?” Gary asked.

“It looks like they’re going to start rounding up militia units,” Ron said.

“Anything in there about us?” Gary perked up.

“Not one word beyond keeping us holed up in the compound,” Ron said, “It just doesn’t
make any sense.”

I guess we’d better stay close to home for a few days and let things cool down partner,”
Gary suggested.

25Aug07…

“Hey Ron you awake?” Gary said entering the OP.

“Halfway,” Ron muttered, “What brings you out so early?”

“It’s not early, it is 8:30,” Gary replied.

“Middle of the night,” Ron muttered.

“Anyway, they fired those Secret Service agents,” Gary said.

“What Secret Service agents?” Ron asked.

“The ones that were guarding the dynamic duo,” Gary explained. “I think they got rail-
roaded. Charged them with dereliction of duty because they let the two Senators out of
their sight. They should have gotten the award for valor for just putting up with the two

314
broads.

“What happened to the bimbos,” Ron asked.

“They had to be admitted to a Nursing home. They were in comas and on respirators,”
Gary said. “Bimbos? Isn’t that a little hash?”

“I guess there’s a God after all,” Ron laughed. “Serves them right. My Mama always
said bimbos is as bimbos does.”

“Tell me Forrest, when are we getting out of this place?” Gary asked.

“A few days,” Ron answered, “Let them get a little further along on the relo camp and
we’ll take it out.”

31Aug07…

The entire militia had left via the tunnel and had climbed aboard a ‘borrowed’ school
bus. Jan drove her friends Ron and Gary and their friend Clarence.

“So, where is this camp being built?” Jan asked.

“You know the park on 10th Street West just this side of Lancaster?” Ron asked.

“Sure, where do you want me to drop you off?” Jan asked.

“Gary quit pouting, so we’re going to let him shoot his gun tonight,” Ron teased, “About
a block south should do.”

“You guys haven’t changed in 9 years,” Jan said.

“Has it been that long?” Gary remarked, “Only seemed like 6 to me.”

“Is he always like this?” Jan asked.

“Sometimes he’s worse,” Ron admitted.

Considering the size of the park, the Army didn’t seem to have many soldiers on guard.
They let Gary kill both of them. It took him a whole mag, but they were down for good.
They set the half-finished buildings on fire and headed back to Palmdale.

“Looks like we picked up a tail Ron,” Jan said, “I told you that you should have stayed in
the back.”

“They’re civilians,” Clarence said turning from the back window, “But, they have a red
light on so I suppose we’d better pull over. We can always kill them.”

315
One man approached Jan and a second slipped up along the right side of the vehicle.
Jan started to roll down her window when…

316
 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 5 – On His Magesty’s Secret Service

…the second man put his gun right up against Ron’s window. “Secret Service,” the
agent said, “Roll down that window very carefully.”

“What did we do to attract the attention of the Secret Service?” Ron asked. “Dubya must
be getting real desperate to send you boys after us.”

“Are you Ron Green?” the agent asked.

“You’re pointing a gun at me and you don’t even know who I am?” Ron snapped.

“Answer the question,” the agent insisted.

“Yes, I’m Ron Green, “But you bit off a bigger bite than you can chew guy.”

“Good,” the agent said lowering his pistol, “Can we talk?”

“About what?” Ron asked.

“About us joining your survival community,” the agent said.

“Why would we want to let the Secret Service in?” Ron laughed. “You must think we just
fell off the turnip truck.”

“We’re the agents who were guarding the Senators in San Francisco,” the agent said,
“You may have heard of us. We got fired for no reason at all.”

“Dereliction of Duty, I heard,” Ron said.

“Following Senator’s Feinstein’s orders is what really happened,” the man replied. “Had
a .38 in her purse and said she could handle any trouble that came up.”

“She was as arrogant in real life as she was on TV, huh?” Ron ventured.

“She was a princess on TV compared to real life,” the man said, “In real life she and
Boxer were real bimbos.”

“What did I tell you Gar-Bear?” Ron said turning around.

“What kind of a name is Gar-Bear?” the agent asked, “Sioux?”

“It’s German Mr. Secret Service Man,” Gary said, “And I have a temper to match.”

“No offense,” the agent said, “What do you say?”

317
“Suppose we believe you for a minute,” Ron said. “You have all of your things with
you?”

“They’re at the Days Inn,” the agent replied.

“Give me the key and get in back,” Ron said. “Don’t try nothing, old Gar-Bear’s a dead
shot with that MP5.”

“Yeah, we saw,” the agent laughed.

“We’re gonna have to blindfold you guys,” Ron said. “And don’t listen either.”

“Ron, we don’t have any blindfolds,” Clarence pointed out.

“Ok, you guys just close your eyes,” Ron said, “And don’t peek.”

When they got back to Jan’s, they led the SS men down to the tunnel and over to Moon
Shadows. Gary pulled Ron aside and asked if he’d lost his mind.

“Don’t peek and don’t listen?” Gary said, “Are you nuts?”

“Figured I’d let you use them for target practice if they don’t check out,” Ron explained,
“You are a lousy shot with that MP5, partner.”

“They were too close,” Gary popped off, “I’m used to shooting at 600 yards.”

Fortunately for the men, the Chronicle had done a follow up story with the agents’ pic-
tures. This established their identities. The question of whether or not they would be al-
lowed to join the community was settled soon after when they revealed what they knew
of Bush’s plans. Their colleagues on the White House detail had been more than oblig-
ing in view of the raw deal they’d gotten.

They didn’t have places, dates and times, but they did have a pretty fair overview of
what Dubya had in mind. He intended to round up all of the militia groups around the
country and place them in relo camps. This jived pretty much with the orders they’d tak-
en from the tent. After that, he was going to start collecting the rest of the firearms. This
didn’t seem to be in character for Bush and the three old geezers said so.

The agents were quick to point out that he’d signed USA PA II that included a strongly
beefed up AWB. FEMA, they claimed was going to be assigned to assist the ATF. Gary,
Ron and Clarence weren’t convinced and the agents pulled out their bona fides in des-
peration. It was a complete copy of the President’s files on each of the three men.

“Where did you get this?” Ron asked, shaking his head at the contents of his file.

318
“Is it accurate?” the agent, Paul Shelton, asked.

“Too accurate,” Ron said, “There are things in here that I thought only my wife and I
knew.”

“What about your file Mr. Olsen?” Paul asked.

“It has everything the file that Marshall Thomas gave me and more,” Gary acknowl-
edged.

“Mr. Rawlings,” Paul asked, “What about your file?”

“Well, I told Ron and Gary that I was pretty sharp and didn’t get caught,” Clarence ad-
mitted. “I guess I should have said didn’t get arrested. What are you going to do with
these files?”

“They’re yours to keep,” Paul said, “To my knowledge there’s only one other copy of
those files.”

“Ron? Clarence? I’m going to burn this file,” Gary said.

“Right behind you partner,” Ron agreed.

“Wait for me,” Clarence added.

“Well?” Paul asked.

“Very impressive bona fides, Paul,” Ron said, “As far as I’m concerned you’re in.”

“I agree,” Gary said.

“Me too,” Clarence agreed.

When the three old geezers returned to the OP, Ron thought to ask Paul if he was the
only one who knew the contents of the files or had all 6 agents read them.

“I’m the only one in this group, Ron, but Marshall Thomas saw them some time ago,”
Paul replied.

“He never said a word about it,” Gary said, “But it explains something that happened a
while back.”

“We’d like to borrow a set of your credentials,” Ron said, “Gary is pretty handy with his
computer and can duplicate them.”

319
“No need for that guys, there are blanks in our luggage together with the embosser and
spare badges,” Paul admitted.

“Marshall didn’t bring us any,” Clarence said.

“Marshall was about 10 minutes ahead of getting arrested when he came here, but we
can probably get you some USMS ID and badges,” Paul said.

“How about FBI?” Ron asked.

“Sorry, but we don’t have the money it would take to get those,” Paul said.

“Boys,” Ron laughed, “Gary will spend money for anything he wants. How much do you
need?”

“$1,000 a copy Ron, they’ll pretty expensive,” Paul hedged. “But, they will be the genu-
ine article.”

“What do you need beside money?” Gary asked.

“Passport photos,” Paul said.

“What about passports?” Gary asked.

“Real or fake?” Paul asked.

“How about real passports and real birth certificates for the whole militia, the spouses
and children?” Gary asked. “Under 3 different names with the SS ID in one name, the
USMS ID in a second and the FBI ID under the third for the militia? Oh, and high level
security clearances for the militia members.”

“Now you’re talking big money, plus fingerprint cards and the passport photos,” Paul
said.

“Would $1.3 million cover it?” Gary asked, “I’m down to my last few ingots of gold.”

Paul got a strange look on his face. “I don’t mean to pry, and if it none of my business,
fine, but how big are the ingots?”

“Just the standard 400 troy ounce US Treasury ingots,” Gary said. “We won’t need
much in the way of weapons unless you guys have some special needs.”

“We’re set, in that department,” Paul said, “We have our .40 S&W’s and our MP5K’s.”

“Don’t you want some real guns?” Ron asked.

320
“Like what?” Paul asked.

“Oh, some 10mm MP5/10SD6’s and the S&W 1026 10mm pistols?” Ron replied.

“Wow, sure, Ron,” Paul said, “But one ingot will cover everything and give you change.”

“You sure got pretty trusting in a big hurry,” Paul observed.

“Anyone who thinks Barbara Boxer is a bimbo is ok in my book,” Ron said.

“Why doesn’t one of you come along?” Paul asked.

“How long will this take?” Gary asked.

“2 or 3 days once I have everything I need and about a month for delivery,” Paul said.

“Do you trust him?” Clarence asked.

“Doesn’t matter, it’s only gold and I need the target practice,” Gary said. “Did you see
who Arnold appointed to fill Feinstein’s and Boxer’s places?”

“Who?” Clarence asked.

“Pete Wilson and Gray Davis,” Gary said.

“You’re kidding,” Ron laughed. “They’ll never agree on anything.”

“You’re probably right partner,” Gary laughed, “But I think it’s a match made in Heaven.
Besides, Arnold either made everyone happy or everyone mad.”

“He’s probably going down in state history as the great compromiser,” Ron said.

“Or, the worst Governor we ever had,” Gary laughed.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 6 – Last Hurrah

01Oct07…

“They sure look real Paul,” Gary exclaimed.

“That’s because they are real guys,” Paul said, “Up to a point. Sorry I didn’t have any
money left to return to you, but it was harder than I thought it would be to get the com-
puter records created.”

“What computer records?” Ron asked.

“If anyone runs a computer check on any of those ID’s the computer will return an ID
that shows they’re valid,” Paul explained. “If they dig deeper, you’re in trouble, but most
times people just believe the computer and you’re home free.”

“I appreciate you shaving a few years off my age,” Clarence grinned.

“Well Clarence,” Paul explained, “The three of you are too old to be real SS, FBI or US
Marshals, so I had to make you younger to make the ID’s believable. If anyone says an-
ything, you can say it’s been a tough career and you’re really looking forward to retire-
ment in a few months. Gary can say he’s been desk bound due to an old injury and he
almost never gets into the field.”

“I suppose this means I’ll have to shave and wear a suit,” Gary groused.

“Sorry Gary,” Paul laughed, “But you can’t run around in faded jeans and a golf shirt if
you intend to use those ID’s. By the way, this is quite a setup you folks have.”

“It’s amazing what blood money will buy,” Gary scoffed.

“Blood money?” Paul asked.

“He just has a guilty conscience for turning Wesley Clark in,” Ron commented.

“But he was a traitor,” Paul responded.

“Maybe, but even traitors get the trial first and shot second,” Gary snapped. “Go ask
Marshall about that, if you have any questions.”

“The President has been a little erratic since Clark locked him up,” Paul admitted,
“Probably PTSD.”

“You like your new toys?” Ron asked.

“Not bad, Ron,” Paul smiled broadly, “But those 1026’s have quite the recoil. Maybe

322
that’s why the FBI dropped them in favor of the .40 S & W.”

“A friend of mine says it’s because the FBI is a bunch of limp wrists,” Gary pointed out.
“He later claimed I got it all wrong, but it the shoe fits…”

“How do you manage to handle something that powerful Gary?” Paul asked.

“I don’t,” Gary admitted. “If it was up to me, I’d tote a Ruger Vaquero and a Winchester
rifle in .45 Colt. But, usually, I carry my Super Match and a PT1911. I have been known
to shoot a .50 caliber on occasion, but it’s pretty heavy to lug around.”

“That’s ok Gary,” Paul said, “I didn’t much care for Geraldo either.”

“Is this the worst kept secret in the country?” Gary lamented.

02Oct07…

“It’s time for another expedition,” Gary announced.

“What now?” Ron groaned.

“Well, how about I buy a tour bus or two and we tour country?” Gary suggested.

“And do what?” Clarence asked.

“We do have a list of the relo centers,” Gary observed. “We can do like before and take
out the guards and set those Patriots free. That ought to keep the government busy for
a while.”

“Gary, your ego is writing checks your body can’t cash,” Ron remarked.

“Top Gun, 1986,” Gary smiled, “Bet you thought you had me with that one.”

“I knew I’d heard that somewhere,” Ron said, “But the point is valid. You’re going to get
us all killed.”

“Puck, puck, puck,” Gary responded, trying to contain his laughter.

“It’s cluck, cluck, cluck, butthead,” Ron growled, “And I am not.”

“We’re more likely to get caught if we go sneaking around partner,” Gary insisted. “Look,
let’s get this gold used up before the price falls.”

“We’re going to need 3 busses,” Clarence suggested, “But what kind of excuse are we

323
going to use to be driving around the country? These aren’t normal times, you know.
And the President must be watching us pretty closely.”

“Why don’t you knock it off with them negative waves?” Gary demanded.

“I know that one,” Ron said, “Kelly’s Heroes, 1970.”

“Ok so maybe a bus tour isn’t the way to go,” Gary agreed, “But it’s still time for an ex-
pedition.”

“How are we going to get the vehicles out?” Clarence asked.

“We just drive the mobile CP out, bold as you please, Clarence,” Gary said, “It’s due for
an oil change or something, right?”

“And the pickups?” Clarence asked.

“Buy new ones. Some of those 6 passenger cabs with the long boxes and big engines
and 4-wheel drive,” Gary recommended. “And put campers on them like before. Let’s go
first class this time.”

“Like what?” Ron asked.

“Oh, I sort of like the Dodge Ram 3500 Quad Cab with the 5.9 liter Cummings 6BT Die-
sel engine, long wheel base and 6-speed manual transmission.” Gary offered. “And get
them loaded, with all the stuff.”

“I thought you didn’t know anything about cars,” Clarence frowned.

“Anyone who wears a cowboy hat knows about pickups, Clarence,” Gary grinned from
ear-to-ear.

“This is going to take a while and probably cost you a couple of those gold bars,” Ron
speculated.

“Then you had better get started Ronald,” Gary replied mirthfully.

“Gar-Bear, by the time we get those pickups bought and outfitted, your pal George will
be a lame duck,” Ron protested.

“I’m not worried about George, Ron; it’s the guy who follows him that I want to send a
message to,” Gary responded. “Just do it, ok? The whole idea is to work within the sys-
tem and just give it a nudge here or there from time to time.”

Gary left to take a nap and Ron and Clarence got to visiting.

324
“Clarence, he’s absolutely certifiable,” Ron complained. “Give it a nudge, he says. Blow-
ing up bridges is a nudge? Taking down the electrical grid for a few months is a nudge?”

“I suppose it’s all in how you look at it Ron,” Clarence said, “Gary means well. And you’ll
have to admit, it did stir things up pretty good.”

“Yeah right,” Ron complained. “And got the housing tract surrounded and forced us to
sneak out through a tunnel. And we’ve been cut off from the utilities.”

“So?” Clarence observed. “Except for the generator noise, nothing’s changed. We have
lights and gas and sewage. And, they didn’t bother to cut off cable or the phones.”

“I wouldn’t use the phone to get the time of day pal,” Ron replied, “They’re probably lis-
tening to every call we make and tracking our every move on the Internet.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that Ron,” Clarence disagreed, “Have you paid any attention to
Gary’s office?”

“He has a dozen computer’s, so what?” Ron asked.

“Gary told me that he has some kind of computer program called a spider,” Clarence
explained. “I have no idea how it works, but supposedly it goes from Website to Website
searching for information. Anyway, he has all 12 of those computer’s running that spider
thing of his. He claims that with all of the traffic he’s generating on the T-1 line that he
can surf freely.”

“Does it work?” Ron asked.

“I don’t know,” Clarence said, “Probably not as good as he thinks it does, but it would
take the feds a long time to trace all of that traffic, wouldn’t it?”

03Jan08…

“All of the trucks have been delivered and you’re ready to go partner,” Ron said.

“What about the mobile CP?” Gary asked.

“They pulled the engine and then said it was down waiting for parts,” Ron replied. “Put it
back together last night, so we’re ready to go.”

“And you did get the Dodge pickups I wanted, right?” Gary asked.

“Almost 3 million dollars’ worth,” Ron explained, “And they got the Ham radios and eve-
rything you wanted including satellite phones.”

“Let’s go send Senator Kerry a little message, boys,” Gary smiled.

325
“Kerry?” Ron replied.

“Well yeah,” Gary said, “The Republicans don’t stand a chance this time around, so Ker-
ry gets his turn. Although, I hope someone shoots him and Edwards gets the job. He’d
be the perfect President, he doesn’t know squat.”

The situation around the US had really gone to hell. Militia groups were doing their best,
but one little mistake and they were in a relo camp. Bush had never gotten around to
picking up the firearms; he couldn’t even catch the militias, not all of them anyway. This
was probably the three old geezers’ last expedition, too. Gary had said something about
packing it in and moving to Switzerland or somewhere. He even suggested Mexico be-
cause as bad as the US dollar was, the peso was in far worse shape. And, he still had
80+ ingots tucked away in his basement.

“Well, I’m not quite sure how to tell you this partner, but I’m not going,” Ron said.

“What do you mean you’re not going?” Gary asked, “We’re partners.”

“Are we?” Ron asked. “Ever since you got that money for turning in Clark, you’ve used
that money like a hammer over our heads. Hell, I bought into it at first, blowing up the
bridges and taking down the electrical grids. But, not this time; you can count me out.”

“But why?” Gary asked.

“You aren’t that much different than Bush,” Ron said, “It’s let’s do this, or can we do
that? I even put in a tunnel so that we could get out of the place after the Army camped
out on our doorstep. And I built an incinerator to burn the trash. But getting those trucks
for you was my last official act. I quit.”

“Ok, if you’re not going, the mission is off,” Gary said. “Give each member of the militia
the title and keys to his or her pickup and we’ll forget the whole thing. Make that your
last official act.”

With that, Gary turned on his heels and left the OP. Ron passed out the titles and keys
to the pickups and called it quits. Clarence tried to talk to first Ron and then Gary, but
Ron only said that he’d quit and Sharon kept saying that Gary was ‘in dispose’.

Clarence tried Roy next, but all Roy knew was that Ron had passed out the keys to the
new pickups with the titles filled out to transfer ownership from the Association to the
militia members.

Derek should know, Clarence thought, but Derek was as much in the dark as Roy. The
men had one thing very much in common; they were the most stubborn people Clar-
ence had ever known. Clarence decided he would have to take over running things until
the two men got over their snit.

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His first problem was propane. They were burning a lot of propane and had no means to
refill the tanks with the Army blockade. He went over to talk to Jan and she agreed to
allow a fill pipe on her lot. Then, Clarence talked to AmeriGas and wanted to know what
it would take to put in a ¾ mile long fill pipe. Ron didn’t object to Clarence using the OP,
but he refused to set foot inside. Clarence used some of the $200,000 petty cash fund
to pay for the pipe installation.

“Mighty nice of you to let me use the OP Ron,” Clarence said, “I guess I’ll have to take
care of things for a while.”

“You’re welcome to use it buddy, just leave me out of it,” Ron said not unkindly.

“What do I do when I need more money to keep things going?” Clarence asked.

“Go talk to Mr. Moneybags and tell him you need some more,” Ron snapped.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 7 – Amends

“I’ll get it Lucy,” Clarence said.

“Hello Clarence,” Gary greeted his friend.

“Gary, come in, come in,” Clarence said, “Where have you been keeping yourself?”

“It’s a long story Clarence, so I won’t bore you with the details,” Gary replied. “Here,
take these please, they’re pretty heavy.”

“What’s the gold for Gary?” Clarence asked.

“I presume that you’re running things now and you’re probably getting low on money,”
Gary said, “Haul those down to Van Nuys and cash them in for currency when you need
more cash.”

“How about some coffee and you fill in your Old Dutch Uncle on what’s going on around
here,” Clarence suggested.

“I’ll take a cup of coffee anyway,” Gary agreed.

“Sit yourself down Gary,” Clarence offered, “And I’ll get us some coffee.”

“Thanks Clarence.”

“Here,” Clarence said handing Gary a mug, “Black, right?”

“Right.”

“Roy says that Ron passed out the keys and titles to the trucks but that he didn’t know
any more than that,” Clarence opened the subject.

“Good.”

“Good, what?” Clarence asked.

“Good that he passed out the titles and keys,” Gary replied, “Tell Lucy this is a great cup
of coffee.”

“Thanks. I asked Derek too and he said he didn’t have any idea what was going on ei-
ther,” Clarence said, “So, are you going to tell me?”

“What’s to tell?” Gary shrugged, “I said something about sending a message to Kerry
and Ron said he wasn’t going on the trip. Said he’d gone along but that I had a big head
about the money or something and Lorded myself over everyone. Then he quit. End of

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story.”

“He’s only about half right Gary,” Clarence said, “You have been a little aloof, but I ex-
pect you paying for everything and worrying about everyone has weighed heavily on
you. Of course, you have kind of expected everyone to do it your way most of the time.”

“Well maybe a little, I suppose,” Gary admitted. “I was actually going to ask you to do
me a big favor, but maybe this isn’t the time for it, huh?”

“I’m listening.”

“Well, we got pickups for all the militia people but we didn’t get pickups for ourselves,”
Gary explained. “And Jan has been running us all over the place and could probably
use a new vehicle, too.”

“I expect I could do that for you, what kind of vehicles and how do you want them fixed
up?” Clarence asked.

“Would a pickup be ok with you?” Gary asked.

“Sure Gary, just like the ones we got the militia?” Clarence asked.

“I’d like a white one Clarence and you and Ron can pick out your own colors,” Gary re-
sponded. “Just don’t tell him I’m behind it, ok?”

“Ok Gary, I won’t say anything to Ron,” Clarence replied.

“Good, because he might misunderstand my motives here,” Gary said.

“And what might those be?” Clarence asked.

“I’m sick and tired of the whole thing Clarence,” Gary sighed, “Figured that I get a two-
horse trailer and Sharon and I’d just get out and see some of this country before we’re
too old to travel.”

“Actually, we need a mite more operating capital Gary,” Clarence said,” Could you spare
five more of those ingots?”

“That’s too much for me to carry partner, come on over and I’ll dig them out for you,”
Gary said.

“Ok, I can make a couple of trips,” Clarence agreed.

Clarence no more needed 7 bars of gold than a hole in his head. He took the bars to

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Van Nuys after calling ahead to make sure they had enough cash on hand. Derek
helped him and they took the bars to LA and came home with $4,690,000 in Eagles.
Clarence filled the propane tanks, ordered the trucks and 3 of the 2-horse trailers. He
had the back seats modified to tip up to reveal a gun case. Therein he secreted the ri-
fles, submachine guns and other weapons. Ammo went in the campers, except for the
40mm grenades.

Clarence had gone down and done the Old Dutch Uncle routine with Ron, too and
heard Ron’s side of the story. It seems that Ron was angry because he didn’t want to be
a sitting duck in the mobile command post.

Derek saw what Clarence had done to the back seats and told Roy about it. Together,
they set about modifying all 48 of the pickups in exactly in the same way. Clarence had
bought 3 identical white pickups and a new van for Jan. Even with the horse trailers, he
had almost exactly 4.5 million left over. He decided to have a birthday party for Gary on
Sunday March 23, 2008, Gary’s 65th birthday. Ron agreed to attend, but cautioned that
he wasn’t going to be the one to break the ice. Gary said he’d come, but he wasn’t
apologizing to anyone for anything.

23Mar08…7pm…

Gary and Sharon were at the party as were Ron and Linda. Both men were stiff and re-
served, almost like they had a corncob up their…

“Gary, why don’t you tell Ron you’re sorry you’re a butthead and bury the hatchet?”
Clarence suggested when he couldn’t take it anymore.

“Ok Clarence. Ron, I’m sorry you’re a butthead,” Gary said.

“If I was as ugly as you, I’d be sorry too,” Ron smiled.

“Being we have those nice new pickups,” Clarence suggested, “How about we go see
the country?”

“Sorry Clarence,” Gary said, “I can’t make it.”

“Why not, you told me you and Sharon were going traveling,” Clarence reminded Gary.

“Yeah, but I remembered something pal,” Gary smirked, “The song says ‘See the USA
in your Chevrolet’ and all we bought were Dodges.”

“When do we leave Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“Will you be up by noon?” Gary asked.

“Hell partner, I’ll be ready for supper by noon, how about 8am?” Ron asked.

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“Now, just so we don’t have any more fights over money,” Clarence said, “We’re all go-
ing to start out even. I put an identical amount in the gun well under the back seats. To
get the back seats to open up, pull on the choke on the dash.”

“Clarence, modern pickups don’t have chokes,” Ron protested.

“I know, that’s why it says Lights,” Clarence laughed.

Unknown to Ron and Clarence, the Dodge dealer had made so much money on the
deals, even after the considerable discount he gave them, that he had included an ACR
GyPSI 406 Personal Locator Beacon in each glove compartment. The dealer had filled
out the registration cards all in the name of the Homeowners Association and had
mailed them to NOAA. All anyone had to do was turn on the radio and it would transmit
a 406MHz signal to a satellite and a 121.5MHz SAR homing beacon. It ought to be in-
teresting if several went off at the same time in different locations.

“You really should let me drive,” Sharon insisted.

“Why, just because I don’t have a driver’s license?” Gary scorned, “You can’t drive stick
shift, so I guess we don’t have any choice.”

“I can too,” Sharon insisted. “You bought that new Plymouth Horizon and left me sitting
in Davenport, Iowa with no way to get to work except learn to drive the thing. Don’t you
remember?”

“I remember that it was icy as hell and that’s the only reason you were able to learn to
drive,” Gary said.

“Well, I can drive a stick shift,” Sharon insisted.

“Ok, you drive, just skip every other gear,” Gary laughed, pulling over.

It had been 1982 when they’d bought the stick shift and every car since had an auto-
matic transmission. After she tried several different gears, Sharon gave up and Gary
returned to the driver’s seat.

“Besides, the fake ID’s included driver’s licenses with each set, so I have 3 driver’s li-
censes,” Gary reminded her.

“When are we going to stop?” she asked, “I need to use the ladies room.”

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“How about San Bernardino?” he suggested, “We’ll be there in 45 minutes. It’s only an
hour from Palmdale to San Bernardino, you know.”

Ever been on one of those trips? The kids don’t have to go until you 5 minutes past the
rest stop and 40 miles from the next one. Fortunately, the warm sun beating through the
window lulled Sharon right to sleep.

“We’re here,” Gary announced.

“Where?” Sharon asked.

“The rest stop at Palm Springs,” Gary said, “I thought that you had to go to the ladies
room.”

“When do we get to San Bernardino?” Sharon said, “I can wait.”

“Oh, about an hour ago,” Gary said.

Gary was in front, Ron in the middle and Clarence was bringing up the rear. As Gary
and Clarence stood stretching their legs and Ron went to dispose of this installment of
his ‘water pill’ Gary noticed Derek and his family pull in, followed by Damon, who was
followed by Roy who was followed by…

“Did you arrange this meeting Clarence?” Gary asked.

“Don’t look at me,” Clarence raised his hands, “Blame Ron or someone else.”

“Hi Dad, fancy running into to you,” Derek said.

“Yeah right, Gary snorted, “I told you I was taking I-40.”

“Then you should have gone straight ahead when you hit route 18,” Derek said. “And
yes, the whole group is here, about a ½ mile apart.”

“Derek?” Ron asked. “What are you doing here?”

“Some of us talked it over Ron and we decided to follow you three around and slip off
from time to time and complete the original mission,” Derek replied.

“Don’t look at me, Ron, I’m as surprised as you are,” Gary stated.

“That’s right Ron,” Clarence supported Gary.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 8 – Trapped & Surrounded

“Jeez, if I’d have known, I have brought some money,” Gary said.

“Money ain’t no problem Gary, believe me,” Clarence said.

“But we left the list of relo camps back in Palmdale,” Ron said, “Even if we do have
enough money Clarence.”

“You mean this list?” Derek asked holding up a sheaf of papers. “Roy and I liked what
you did to the back seats too and we did the same to all of the trucks, Clarence.”

“So we have people, money, targets and weapons, right?” Gary summarized.

“Sounds like it to me partner,” Ron agreed.

“Now all we need is for all of us to be willing to go,” Gary suggested, looking in Ron’s
direction.

“Ron was just po’d because he didn’t have his own pickup Gary, I’d bet he’s ready,”
Clarence pointed out.

“There’s a camp at Indio, let’s start there,” Ron said, reviewing the list.

Indio, CA shares the Coachella Valley with such international resort destinations as
Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage and Indian Wells. Well inland, the city is at near sea lev-
el. It is an old community dating back to the mid to late 1800’s. Indio, which is Spanish
for Indian, is an agricultural community and tourist Mecca, boasting several festivals
throughout the year. Mecca, by the way, was the actual name of a town not far away.
The relo camp was located on the east side of town, near the highway sign that an-
nounced one was at sea level. They group filtered into Indio and got motel rooms.

After dark, Derek and Roy left to reconnoiter the camp. The camp was small, with per-
haps only 300-400 residents. It was built in the fashion typical of the new camps, circu-
lar with a guard tower in the center and roving patrols of FEMA guards with dogs. FEMA
had learned it’s lessons after the spring of 2005 and no longer built its camps as
squares or rectangles; those shapes were simply too vulnerable to attack. The new de-
sign also meant that it was pretty difficult to get a clear shot on the tower guards, be-
cause the towers were usually too far from the nearest approach for a shot from any-
thing but a .50 caliber rifle made by an expert marksman.

“What do you think?” Roy whispered.

Derek pointed towards the roving guard and their dogs. “We can take them out, but I
don’t see how we can get the tower,” he whispered back.

333
“Looks like a .50 cal machine gun in the tower, too,” Roy whispered lowering his binocu-
lars.

“You never have an Abrams when you need one,” Derek jokingly whispered.

“We’d better get back to the motel and let them know,” Roy suggested.

“What does it look like Derek?” Gary asked.

“Circular camp, guard tower in the center with an M-2, and roving guards with dogs,”
Derek quickly summarized.

“How close can we get?” Ron asked.

“Not close enough to do anything more than take out the roving guards,” Roy offered his
opinion. “If we had an AT-4, we could take it out, but we didn’t bring any.”

“How far are we from the 29 Palms Marine Corps Center?” Gary asked.

“Not that far, but there are a lot of troops up there training,” Roy replied.

“Did anyone think to bring their fatigues?” Gary asked.

“Dad means ACU’s, Roy,” Derek explained. “Yeah, we brought them why?”

“Do you think you could get into the base and steal some AT-4s?” Gary asked.

“Roy?” Derek asked.

“We’ll have to put Becky in charge,” Roy said, “She’s the jarhead and she’s been
through training there.”

“Why don’t you boys take care of that and Ron, Clarence and I can run down to the Sal-
ton Sea and look around?” Gary suggested.

Becky took 3 others and they infiltrated the 29 Palms base. They liberated 4 of the
M136 AT-4s and returned to Indio. The three old geezers went down to the Salton Sea,
rented a boat and some fishing gear and went fishing. Unfortunately, they almost caught
their limit. The Sea had tilapia, gulf croaker, corvina, and sargo. The tilapia weighed up
to 3.5 pounds, and the corvina have weighed up to 37 pounds and measured 42 inches.

“The problem with fishing Ronald,” Gary said, “Is that I don’t like fish. I’ve never seen
any of these kinds of fish before, either. We’re staying in a motel, what are we going to
do with the fish?”

334
“Give them away, I suppose,” Ron replied.

“Yeah, right,” Gary responded, “We’ll just drive up and down Main Street in Indio with a
sign that says free fish.”

“Why don’t we give them to some of those rest homes?” Clarence suggested.

Although Becky et. al had successfully stolen 4 M136 AT-4s, the theft had not gone un-
noticed. The Marines at 29 Palms issued an alert to all law enforcement agencies and
FEMA groups in the southern California area. And while Indio didn’t have an English
language paper, one from Palm Springs picked up the story about the three ‘heroes’
giving the fish to the nursing homes. Someone put 2 and 2 together and FEMA rushed
people to the Indio area. Meanwhile, the Palmdale Militia was finalizing its plans for the
attack on the relo center.

Derek and Roy did another recon, just in case something had changed. Aside from a
few extra guards, they noticed nothing in particular that concerned them. They set the
attack for 0400 on the 28th of March. In the guard tower, 12 pairs of eyes scanned the
perimeter of the camp, especially beyond the lights. One of the guards spotted Roy and
Derek as they pulled out to return to their separate motels.

28Mar08…

The militia slipped out of their motel rooms starting around midnight and retrieved their
weapons from the pickups. They worked their ways to the camp from the motels and
surrounded the facility just outside of the glow of the lights. It was a fair march from
some of the motels and they weren’t in place and ready to go until shortly before 4am.
Precisely at 0400, Becky fired the AT-4 exploding the now empty guard tower. Nearly
simultaneously, the FEMA guards dropped to the ground, narrowly avoiding being shot
by the 12 sniper units Derek had positioned at various locations. Meanwhile, back in In-
dio, the FEMA people were rounding up the families and herding them into the local
High School Gymnasium.

Derek radioed everyone to withdraw, but as they turned to leave, the FEMA troops who
had followed them to the camp opened fire. They were trapped, surrounded, and out-
numbered. FEMA had them dead to rights, too because FEMA had sacrificed the empty
guard tower before they closed the trap. To compound their problems, FEMA had flown
in an elite unit from the east coast.

“Give the fish to the rests homes,” Gary whispered to Clarence. “That was real smart.
Why didn’t we just waive a red flag and say here we are, come and get us?”

“I think we did, partner,” Ron whispered. “How the hell are we going to get out of this

335
one?”

“Don’t ask me,” Gary whispered back, “I was in the Air Force.”

The FEMA forces were well equipped and had night optics, MP5/10SD6’s they’d com-
mandeered from the FBI, and M-24 SWS equipped snipers. They were, as was men-
tioned, an elite group and had been trained by Delta Force. They had only one short-
coming, overconfidence, in abundance. The terrain favored the militia, however and
they slowly moved toward the FEMA troops. They had to get out of the trap before sun-
rise, less than 2 hours away. Despite the night vision equipment, the FEMA people
didn’t even sense the presence of the militia members until it was too late. Knives,
honed to a razor edge were the order of the night, followed by the suppressed MP5/10’s
the militia carried.

They had no choice except to kill all 83 of the FEMA people. They came away with a
great haul of weapons and a few minor injuries. When they arrived back at the motels,
they learned that their families had been scooped up by FEMA and taken to the High
School. They emptied out the motel rooms and headed for the school. By dawn, they
had taken out the FEMA guards and had released their families. Gary suggested that
they head for Chiraco Summit as soon as they had the horses and rethink the whole af-
fair. They climbed the grade to the Summit and parked at the Patton Museum. The 51
new pickups stood out like a sore thumb.

“Why don’t we go to the Underground City?” Roy suggested. “We can get off I-10 at De-
sert City, go north on 177 to 62 and come into the place the back way.”

“What underground city?” Ron asked.

“Someone get a laptop fired up and hooked into a cell phone or the satellite phone,”
Roy suggested. “Go to desertdogs dot com and look up the underground city and check
it out. I think you might be surprised with what you find. We could move the operation
there for the time being and get back to Palmdale for the stuff we left behind.”

“It says here that from Interstate 10 in Blythe, you take Highway 95 north for about 15
miles. At the BLM sign on the left, turn left up a short dirt road to the intaglios,” Gary re-
ported. “Ok, we have to get these trucks out of sight anyway. Roy, you lead the way.”

It took them several hours to make the trip to the underground city. It appeared to be an
old civil defense facility set up in a mine. Those new trucks were a good idea up to a
point. There were no worries about maintenance or such, but they did stick out. Maybe
some dull paint or something would help disguise the vehicles a little. Damon, Derek
and Roy unloaded Damon’s Harley from the back of Damon’s pickup and Damon of-
fered to make a run down to Blythe to pick up enough spray paint to do one vehicle.
Once that vehicle was done, he suggested, they could take a pickup into Blythe and
load up on more paint and some camo netting to hide the pickups from overhead. While
Damon was gone, they removed the camper shell from Roy’s pickup and emptied the

336
contents into the mine.

Damon returned with several cans of flat earth tone colored paint and they painted
Roy’s pretty new truck until it was just plain ugly. It blended in pretty well with the ter-
rain, too. Derek and Roy drove down to Blythe and rounded up camo netting, paint,
lumber plus some fresh food from a market. They also picked up all kinds of things they
would need for an extended stay at the mine. They erected the netting using the lumber
and some rope and parked the pickups underneath. They unloaded the pickups into the
mine and spent the next couple of days repainting the vehicles. Roy’s camper shell was
painted in camo too and went back on the pickup.

“Who is going to go back to Palmdale?” Gary asked.

“I suppose I could go,” Derek offered. “What do you want me to get?”

“One pickup won’t be enough Derek,” Gary responded. “I would suggest that you get all
of the ammo except for a little for the folks at Moon Shadows. Definitely bring the big
guns and munitions. Why don’t you get into my basement and bring back 10 ingots of
that gold while you’re at it. You’d better load up on pots and pans and food, too.”

“I think that’s an awful tall order Gar-Bear,” Ron offered.

“There’s no reason to go back to Palmdale anytime soon pal,” Gary lamented, “At least
not before the next election in November. But, if I’m wrong, you work it out with Derek.
I’m just thankful we got out of Indio with our butts intact.”

By the time Ron, Clarence, Damon, Derek, Roy and Jim had discussed it, they decided
it would take 48 pickups to haul what they were going to bring back. The mine was huge
and they wouldn’t want for storage space, even with 48 pickup loads of stuff. They de-
cided to send a pickup off every 10-12 hours, sort of randomly. That way, they would
have enough people in Palmdale at any one time to move the things they needed and
still have some folks to protect the underground city. Thoughts of propane and genera-
tors and such were but distant memories. For the moment, they had to survive in Indian
country. (literally)

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 9 – A New Home

“I can’t believe you read the directions for the wrong place off that website,” Derek said.
“If we hadn’t followed Roy, we would be looking at Indian carvings.”

“I get confused sometimes,” Gary admitted.

“There’s even a lake back there,” Derek continued.

“I should have had you bring a generator,” Gary said.

“I loaded up that 15kw rig of yours and brought it Dad,” Derek said. “We’ll have to get
some bottles of propane in Blythe, but we’ll have lights.

“I thought I’d heard the last about propane,” Gary muttered. “Why don’t you just buy a
used propane delivery truck and some 25-gallon bottles? We can run the generator
from the truck and use the bottles when you have go to town to fill it up?”

“That’s ok with me, what are we going to use for lighting?” Derek asked.

“There’s no reason to install anything permanent,” Gary suggested, “How about you buy
up a bunch of drop lights. We can string them out along the entrance tunnel anyway,
and when we leave we can stow them in the trailer with the generator. Since everyone
has a towing package, why don’t you guys pick up a trailer for each of your trucks and
we can move our stuff whenever we get ready to bug out?”

“You want the Mk-19’s and Ma Deuces mounted on the Hummers?” Derek asked.

“Better not kid, just put them on the floor in the back of the vehicles and throw a tarp
over them,” Gary replied. “Who are you going to get to drive the Hummers?” Gary
asked, “We have 4 more vehicles than militia members”

“Militia members Dad,” Derek explained, “The spouses can drive the pickups.”

“Get trailers for the Hummers too,” Gary suggested. “And paint them with the camo col-
ors while you’re at it. In fact, if you have time, paint everything with that camo scheme.”

They ended up with used 6’x12’ U-Haul trailers. They only held about 400 cubic feet,
but there were 52 of them. Only the trailer for the generator was an open trailer, again,
6’x12’. The generator was permanently mounted in the open trailer and a rack built to
hold the dozen 25-gallon propane bottles. All of the goods were sorted and stored in the
trailer to allow them to bug out with less than 2 hours’ notice. They even built a kitchen
into one of the closed trailers. It was a low overhead, but not everyone in the world is 6’
tall and it worked out ok.

338
“I never thought I’d see the day I was sleeping on a cot,” Gary laughed, “And enjoying it.
It’s harder than my bed and I sleep good.”

“How much longer are we planning on hiding out in this mine?” Ron asked.

“What’s today?” Gary asked, “I have no sense of time anymore.”

“June 17th,” Ron replied, “They must have given up looking for us by now.”

“I suppose we could move on,” Gary agreed, “How about we start sending them down to
Blythe and across the bridge one or two pickups at a time?”

“And then what?” Ron asked.

“Well, if I remember right, once we get east of Quartzsite a few miles, it’s nothing but
open desert most of the way to Phoenix,” Gary said, “We could get off I-10 and go cross
country from there. We could hit that FEMA camp in Goodyear then hightail it up to
Prescott and cut over to Snow Flake.”

“What’s in Snow Flake?” Ron asked.

“Nothing that I know of, but it’s just south of my all-time favorite Arizona town,” Gary re-
plied.

“I don’t know what on earth is in Holbrook to get excited over,” Ron shook his head.

“Nothing Ron,” Gary acknowledged, “That’s just the point. There is nothing much in
Holbrook except that power plant to the west 5 miles. Not many people, but they’re
friendly once they get to know you. I just like the place.”

“If you’re so much in love with Holbrook, why don’t you just move there?” Ron asked.

“I have, two or three times,” Gary replied. “You are behind on your reading.”

“Where are we going from there?” Ron inquired.

“I don’t care, pick a place,” Gary suggested. “Just make sure there’s a FEMA camp in
the area. I owe them SOB’s, big time. You can pick all of the routes my friend, just make
sure we end up in Texas in December.”

“Where in Texas, Crawford?” Ron raised his brows.

“Or within shooting distance from there,” Gary said.

It’s ok to make the occasional mistake, just as long as you learn from them. If you’re go-

339
ing to buy something for survival needs, for example, buy a little and try it out, don’t just
buy 50 cases and hope you learn to like it or it will do what you intended. You might
starve to death, if it’s a food product you can’t stand to eat. The same thing applies to
attacking FEMA camps. Don’t walk into a trap; take your time, check it out; it is better to
be safe than have to belly crawl 200 yards in desert brush and cut someone’s throat.
Hell, you might wake up a rattlesnake and get bit on the butt. Or, one of those FEMA
guys might just get lucky and blow your head off.

They were very careful in the Goodyear area. No one even knew they were there. The
AT-4 wasn’t fired until AFTER they’d shot the roving guards and they were able to set
about 3,000 people free. They drove up to Snow Flake and to a ravine about 20 miles
south of Holbrook where they camped.

“Why are we camping here Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“You know,” Gary said, “A guy could build one hell of a shelter in those ravines Ronald.
Sort of a basement on top of a basement with a house on top of that.”

“You’d probably have water problems Gar-Bear and have to bring a geologist and re-
grade the whole area,” Ron suggested.

“You’re probably right partner,” Gary admitted. (Read: Only in America - this is a shame-
less plug.)

“Where are we going next Ronald?” Gary asked.

“The map shows this highway going north out of Gallup Gar-Bear, so how’s about we go
up to Mesa Verde?” Ron suggested.

“Any FEMA camps in the area?” Gary asked.

“Colorado Springs,” Ron replied.

“Close enough,” Gary said, “But I’m not staying in any cliff dwelling.”

“Linda and I were going to stay at Far View Lodge partner, but if you want to camp out,
it’s ok with me,” Ron grinned.

They stayed at Mesa Verde until they had seen every site. After that, they split up with
half the group going north on 550 to 50 and east to Pueblo. The others took 160 to
Walsenburg and I-25 to Pueblo. They formed up as a group in Fountain. The FEMA relo
camp was just west and south of the 128 exit. They decided to go on up to Colorado
Springs and use several of the motels in the area. It was early enough in the day that
they could find a place to board the horses. The horses were becoming a real problem

340
too what with finding boarding stables and exercising them and keeping them fed.

“As much as I hate to suggest this guys, we need to sell those horses,” Gary an-
nounced.

“I’m all for that partner, they are a real pain in the arse,” Ron said.

“In more ways than one Ron,” Clarence added.

“Clarence you’re the horse expert, do you think you can sell them, the trailers and the
tack and find us some travel trailers?” Gary asked.

“Gary, if I sell them cheap enough, someone will buy them and the same goes for the
trailers and tack,” Clarence replied smoothly. “What did you have in mind for travel trail-
ers?”

“Nothing too big and we have to be able to pull them with the pickups,” Gary responded.
“New or used; it makes no difference to me. Take Ronald with you and get someone to
drive my pickup, if you would. Just get 3 that are the same. Maybe 24 footers?”

Ron, Clarence and Damon set off to sell the horses and trailers. They decided to keep
the tack because it didn’t take that much space and horses were easier to come by than
saddles. They came back pulling 3 Airstream 25’ Classics that featured the limited up-
grade package. They were about 3-4 years old, but in excellent condition. Gar-Bear
took one look at the trailer and decided he needed someone to drive his pickup; there
was no way he was going to try and maneuver the 25’ trailer. Mary volunteered, quickly
settling that issue.

“You want me to camo the house trailers Dad?” Damon asked.

“I don’t know, never saw a camo’d travel trailer before. You guys talk it over and de-
cide,” Gary begging the question.

“You want yours painted Clarence?” Ron asked.

“I’ll do what you do Ron,” Clarence grinned.

“Go for it Damon, but make sure they match the pickups,” Ron directed, “That way we’ll
know who’s is which.”

“When he gets those done, what say we pay a visit to that relo camp?” Gary suggested.

“Do you have any idea how long it is going to take that boy to paint 3 25’ trailers with
cans of spray paint Gary?” Ron asked. “Damon, just paint the tops and we’ll hang camo
netting over them. I want to get back to that camp this year.”

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°

Nested as it was up against the eastern boundary of Ft. Carson, the Fountain/Colorado
Springs relo camp was not an easy target. They had driven down 12/13 in pickups to
minimize their exposure. They parked the 4 pickups on the 128 on ramp headed north
bound and eased over to the relo camp. It was not a long walk and the three old gee-
zers were along on this trip. Gary had picked up a Nikon 2.5-10x50 scope and had
sighted it in. He was dying to try it out under these low light conditions. Both his and
Ron’s Super Match rifles had the optional Rader adjustable triggers and had been fine-
tuned by their armorer. Gary wasn’t sure about the Japanese scope. Some Japanese
products were primo and some were just glitzy junk. He had also thought about buying
one of the Springfield SOCOM 16’s but USA PA II and the AWB cut off sales before he
had the chance.

After they got into position everyone with a sniper class weapon picked out a target.
There were more snipers than targets so some of the unlucky FEMA guys were guaran-
teed a place in the great beyond. It was on the count of three and Derek said fire-fire-
fire. You could barely hear the pops as the rounds left the barrels and the guards went
down. Becky let the AT-4 fly and the guard tower and its occupants became yesterday’s
news. A 40mm grenade blew open the gate and the militia hit the road without looking
back.

The two explosions raised an alarm at Ft. Carson and they could hear the sirens and
klaxons as they climbed into the four pickups. Half an hour later, they were all in their
motel rooms in Colorado Springs and went to bed without a care on their mind. By the
time the troops had responded to the alarms and had approached the relo camp, most
of the residents had boiled out headed in 100 different directions. The post commander
ordered his troops to stand down; he didn’t particularly agree with what Bush was doing
and it was FEMA’s job, not his, to harass the public. His job was to protect and defend
the Constitution and somehow that just didn’t square with chasing those civilians.

The commander silenced the alarms and made a note in the log he kept. It read, “FEMA
camp attacked, unable to respond in time.” He waited a bit and sent notification up the
chain, apologizing for the tardiness of his troops and taking full responsibility for the fail-
ure to respond timely. The General had just laughed and said, “Well, these things hap-
pen, don’t they?” and hung up. Apparently not all of the Patriots were part of the militias.
Maybe some of them were in the military as well.

George and Laura were looking forward to getting back to Crawford, too. The twins
were still running amok and had this been 2004, Kerry would have won. As it was, Kerry
was going to win this election; the Republicans couldn’t field a strong candidate. It was
a real shame that Arnold was disqualified from the presidency; he’d have charmed
them.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 10 – The Barbeque

The barbeque. Word was that KC, the Southeast and Texas had great barbeque. He
knew they would eventually be in Texas so maybe they’d check out the barbeque in KC
and wander on towards the east and then turn south. Somehow they had to explain
their odyssey and the great barbeque hunt seemed as good as any. Gar-Bear had final-
ly gotten smart and sold the horses and these new trailers weren’t all that bad to pull.
Ron’s mind jumped from subject to subject as they drove on US 50. They could have
grabbed I-70 and gone to KC, but Gary mentioned Dodge City, so they had gone down
to Pueblo and picked up 50.

On his good days, old Gar-Bear was fine, but on his bad days, he’d get confused and
think he was Wild Bill Hickok or Matt Dillon. A few months back, he’d even gone through
that ‘call me Carlos’ phase. That had been right after what’s his name had been shot in
LA. Gary had specifically asked Paul to get his fake ID’s in the names of Samuel Hamil-
ton Walker, Texas Ranger, Walker Colt), John Coffee Hays (Texas Ranger, Texas Pat-
erson Colt) and Francis Augustus Hamer (Bonnie and Clyde), whoever the hell they
were. Apparently Paul had recognized the names, he’d just snickered, but Ron was in
the dark. And in Colorado Springs, Gary had gone and bought a white cowboy hat and
a can of ScotchGard and started wearing his Laredo’s again even though they killed his
feet. When they got to Dodge City, they visited the reconstructed Front Street but the
interior of the Long Branch Saloon wasn’t a faithful reproduction. And, it turned out that
Missy Kitty’s name was really Dora.

The FEMA camp was located across the river in Independence, Missouri. Ron, Gary
and Clarence found spots in a KOA park and the militia spread out among the motels in
Kansas City. That evening, over dinner at a KC steakhouse, Ron decided to ask Gar-
Bear about those names he’d picked out.

“So, Gary, who was Francis Hamer?” Ron slipped into the conversation while they wait-
ed for their salads.

“They called him Frank and he ambushed Bonnie and Clyde,” Gary replied. “Got me a
white hat in Colorado Springs because Rangers always wear white hats. It’s their
trademark. Let me ask you something Ron, if we’re using sampling barbeque around
the country for an excuse for this trip, what are we doing in a steak house?”

“Wanted to get me an authentic Delmonico steak,” Ron replied.

“Well partner, you are way off base,” Gary laughed. “Delmonico’s was a New York res-
taurant and no one can agree on what an authentic Delmonico steak really was.”

“You’re just saying that because you wanted barbeque,” Ron countered.

“So when are we going to visit Independence?” Gary asked.

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“Tomorrow night after midnight,” Ron replied. “Got to get a barbeque sandwich for lunch
tomorrow.”

“What’s the rush?” Gary replied. “We could spend a week in Independence and not see
half of the tourist sites.

“I figured that you’d want to hit ‘em and get the hell out of Dodge,” Gary observed.

“We were in Dodge last week Gar-Bear and we are already the hell out of Dodge,” Ron
laughed.

The FEMA camp was actually closer to Lee’s Summit than Independence. Although
they had used up the 4 AT-4s from 29 Palms, they still had enough from their Palmdale
stores. The camp wasn’t particularly large and they were able to get pretty close in.
Since they didn’t have any more space to hide guns, they figured to hit and run as they
had in Colorado. Gary’s Nikon scope had proven to be a good scope and he persuaded
Derek to let him shoot the guards within range one at a time until the alarm went out. He
managed to get 4 before Derek got nervous and said “Fire-fire-fire.” Becky popped the
guard tower and off they went, back to KC. For the next several days, they stayed in
KC, but made the trip to Independence each day to see the sites.

“So, who was Sam Walker?” Ron slipped in the question during a conversation.

“Ever heard of the Walker Colt?” Gary asked.

They left KC and headed to Chicago, it was Gary’s kind of town. He was especially fond
of a restaurant run by the mob. They had the best baby back ribs in Chicago and served
beer by the pitcher with the meal. The Chicago FEMA camp was near the prison in Jo-
liet and could wait.

They had driven by the place on the way into town and the camp was out in the open
and would be, at best, a very difficult target. It had two, not one, rings of lights and they
couldn’t even get close to the camp. They probably had a backup generator, too, so cut-
ting the power wasn’t an option. The question became, “How does one attack a camp
when the nearest area not flooded with light is ¾ of a mile from the camp?” The answer,
though obvious, did eliminate the element of surprise.

“I don’t understand it Ron, the restaurant was right here,” Gary insisted.

“When was that, Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“The last time I was in Chicago,” Gary said.

“Ok, but when was the last time you were in Chicago?” Ron pressed.

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“Uh, 1979,” Gary replied. “But, it’s called Timothy O’Toole’s Pub now.”

They gave up and went to Berghoff’s (now closed) where Gary got the baby back ribs,
the same as in 1978 and bought a new Berghoff beer mug. His original Berghoff mug
was intact, but the lettering had worn off. Nicer mug too at $4 rather than the $9.50 they
now charged. Berghoff’s is a Chicago tradition, dating from 1890. If you’re ever in Chi-
cago, try it, but don’t try to steal the beer mug, they just add it to your bill. I did not, I
asked and the waiter sold me one! Told me it would cost the same, but at least I’d have
a clean mug.

The answer to the light problem was to shoot the lights out, which they did the next
night; and the night after and the night after that. Finally, FEMA ran out of light bulbs
and they were ready to attack. They put it off for a couple of nights, however, until FE-
MA reduced the guard force back to the normal level. The camp was large and the
guard tower was nearly out of range of the AT-4 rocket; 2,000 yards according to the
laser rangefinder. The guards stayed well within the lights with their dogs too, at least
400 yards away. Derek could hear the robot from Lost in Space, saying, “Warning Will
Robinson. Danger. Danger.” in his head.

“Abort-abort-abort,” Derek said into the mike. The militia slipped back further into the
darkness and returned to the 8 pickups they’d driven.

“Why did you abort Derek?” Gary asked.

“There are about 90 guards and the range is just too far Dad,” Derek explained. “That
guard tower is 2,000 yards. I don’t think it’s worth the risk.”

“Tell that to the people inside boy,” Gary snapped. “There have to be several thousand
people inside that camp. How’s about we take out the tower and stir things up a little?
Maybe they’ll try to break out. I know it’s a long shot, but 90 guards can’t stop several
thousand people. It’s those towers that keep them timid. ‘Sides, we can take out a few
of the guards even if we can’t get all of them. We have a lot of sniper rifles these days.”

“I’d have to agree with your Dad, Derek,” Roy said. “Even if we only take out half the
guards or less, it will give those people a fighting chance. I’m willing to move in real
close and lob a grenade at the gate, maybe I can hit it.”

“All right, but everyone, Becky included, fire on three,” Derek said. “And no more than
two shots apiece then bug out.”

They slipped back into position and when Derek figured everyone was ready, he said,
“Fire-fire-fire.” Most of the people took 3 shots before they bugged out and over half the
guards were down. The rocket hit the tower at the base of the observation deck, which
slowly leaned over and fell 80’ to the ground. Roy came up short with his first grenade,
but in the confusion, reloaded, moved closer and fired a second time hitting the gate

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squarely. As they melted away in the darkness, you could see the people beginning to
pour out of the camp. They didn’t stick around to count noses. It was a long drive back
to downtown Chicago and their motels.

My Fellow Americans,

“Over the course of the past few months, several of our FEMA relocation centers have
been attacked and the dangerous criminals housed in the centers have been set free to
prey on their fellow countrymen. Despite our best efforts, FEMA and the Department of
Homeland Security have been unable to halt these vicious attacks.

I have a duty to protect the citizens of the United States, and I intend to fulfill that duty at
all costs. Consequently I have determined that it is necessary to impose martial law to
restore order. I realize that this will impose a burden, especially on travelers who are
away from their homes at the moment. Effective at midnight Eastern Time, martial law
will go into effect for an indefinite period. For those individuals away from home, they
may report to the nearest federal building and, upon providing proper identification, will
be issued a travel permit to return to their home.

These terrorists seem to be armed with nothing more than hunting rifles and stolen mili-
tary equipment. I have always supported the right to keep and bear legitimate hunting
and sporting firearms. However, since we can’t distinguish who is using their firearm for
a legitimate purpose and who might be using it against your government, I have ordered
that all firearms of any description be registered. Take your firearms to the nearest fed-
eral building for proper registration.

I regret that this has become necessary. However, in the remaining months of this ad-
ministration, I will do everything within my power to restore peace to our great land. I
urge everyone to cooperate. Some are already calling for UN intervention to restore or-
der and I wish to avoid that, if possible. However distasteful as it may be, if we must call
in the United Nations to restore order, we will do that. Again, I urge every American citi-
zen to cooperate with the government and restore order.

God Bless America.

“What a load of crap,” Ron said. “I thought I was listening to Bill Clinton for a moment.
What are we going to do now?”

“Yeah Gary, if we all go get travel permits, they’re going to know it was us behind all of
this stuff and we’re going to get arrested for sure,” Clarence added.

“We have 3½-hours before martial law goes into effect,” Gary said. “Put out the word to

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saddle up and head south on I-57. Tell them form a convoy with the guys in the Hum-
mer’s in uniform and the weapons mounted. When we get to I-40, we will head west on
I-40 to Needles, and back to the Underground City. It’s going to take the military a while
to get up to speed on this thing. We’ll just play dumb and if we get stopped, the militia
can say they’re escorting us back to California.”

“Do you really think that will work?” Ron asked.

“I don’t have the slightest idea Ronald, my crystal ball is at the cleaners,” Gary sighed.
“But if you have a better idea, let’s hear it.”

“Let’s get to calling Clarence,” Ron said, “It will take us most of those 3-4 hours just to
get clear of Chicago.”

Midnight found them on I-57 just north of the I-70 junction. There was no way the group
could get to California without passing through several major cities. And, they were a
long way from Palmdale and the Underground City in eastern California. If they could
avoid Little Rock (Arkansas) they probably wouldn’t see many government troops until
Oklahoma City. And, if they could somehow skirt Oklahoma City and get to Amarillo,
they could get into New Mexico. Gary was sitting in the back seat with his old road atlas
and his mini-MagLite, looking for routes around all of the big cities. And, until they got to
Texas or New Mexico, those desert camo paint jobs were more of a beacon than cam-
ouflage.

The word went out truck-to-truck to make all transmissions using the newer Bible Code,
where passage references meant something unrelated to the passage. Gary figured
that they probably be ok until they needed fuel. One modification they had the dealer
make was to replace the 35-gallon tanks with aftermarket 55-gallon tanks and the fill
pipes with aftermarket truck fill pipes with the larger openings. The Dodge truck didn’t
lend itself to under the bed auxiliary tanks particularly well, but a little rerouting of the
exhaust had left room for 2 60-gallon auxiliary tanks. 175 gallons of diesel fuel was a lot
of weight to haul and towing a trailer, the mileage wasn’t so good. You weren’t sup-
posed to be able to do a lot of things, but money talked. They could probably get by with
a single stop at some out of the way place where the dealer might turn a blind eye for a
large enough pile of cash. You just never knew who would help you out and wish you
well and who would help you out and turn you in. They holed up outside of Little Rock
and rested. Ron spotted a little Mom & Pop gas station off I-40 and went to check. The
crusty old guy who ran the place had diesel and from a remark or two he made, Ron
figured this guy wouldn’t be the one to turn them in. They topped off all of the tanks and
resumed their journey.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 11 – Almost only counts in…

Horseshoes, hand grenades and dancing. They almost had enough fuel to get to Cali-
fornia too. They should be good to New Mexico. The road was an uphill grade from
Texas to Continental Divide or wherever they crossed. US 70 sounded pretty good to
Gar-Bear and he’d mentioned it around. No one had any objections; they just wanted a
route that would keep them away from roadblocks.

Don’t promise what you can’t deliver and Gary said that all they could do was hope.
East of Oklahoma City they took 270 south and picked up 39 west. After they crossed
the Canadian River, they stopped to rest again near a burg named Dibble. Town had
three schools and not much else, and they were all in the same place at 100 Main St.

They rested up for about 12 hours and took off to the south using the rural roads. They
picked up I-40 20 miles from the Texas panhandle. They did manage to fill up again and
everyone had his or her fingers crossed that the fuel would see them to California. East
of Amarillo, they hopped on I-27 south to US 60 and took it to Clovis, NM where they
finally picked up US 70. However, Gary had been studying the map and it looked to him
like US 60 would get them to the same place as US 70, Globe, AZ. They took a break
and talked it over.

US 60 was the straighter route and might help the fuel situation. Globe and the Phoenix
area were going to be trouble anyway you looked at it. What they really needed was a
small fuel trailer and a hitch on the back of the propane delivery truck. Clovis was a fair
sized community and they bought a hitch at U-Haul and had them install it on the pro-
panel truck. No one was sure what size ball they would end up needing for a fuel trailer,
assuming they could even find one, so Roy just bought one of each size.

Cannon AFB was 8-9 miles west of Clovis and they had auctioned off some surplus
equipment including a couple of 600-gallon fuel trailers. Roy saw one of the units sitting
at a contractor’s place of business and went in and asked if they’d be willing to sell the
trailer. It had been modified from a pintle to a ball hitch. Roy probably could have bought
a new trailer for half of what he paid for the used trailer, but he bought it and they put a
2½” ball on the Propane truck and hauled it off. After they filled the trailer with diesel,
they topped off the remaining vehicles in Clovis and headed west on 60 wishing and
hoping one more time.

East of Globe they stopped and assessed their situation. Traveling cross-country was
out of the question now that they had the Airstreams. The run from Clovis had been
more downhill than up and they weren’t too badly off on fuel. They might have enough
to make it, or maybe not. It wouldn’t be easy to circumnavigate Phoenix, but then what?
They still had to get to the other side of the river once they reached California.

The river bridges and highways were a natural choke point and no doubt there would be
a passel of feds there to arrest anyone without a travel permit. They decided to send
one pickup, sans trailer, to check out Globe. Jim got the short straw so he unhooked the

348
U-Haul and headed to Globe. He was back in less than an hour with unexpected news.
Globe was deserted! He’d broken the locks off a pump and refilled his pickup while he
was at it, too. And he’d grabbed a new Arizona roadmap for Gary.

Gary had always intended to replace the road atlas he’d gotten at Target on clearance
for $2.00, but was too cheap to spend full price. DeLorme sold the ultimate maps on CD
and DVD, but they were expensive and the paper maps at $20 per state ran over
$1,000, purchased one at a time for the full set. The Atlas & Gazetteer ran $650, but
covered the entire country. Then when he did have the money, maps were the last
things on old Gar-Bear’s mind. They slipped into Globe in 2’s and 3’s and topped off
their tanks. There was no reason they couldn’t make it to the Underground City now if
they could just get across the Colorad river.

They skirted Phoenix to the south and got on I-10 west of Goodyear. When they got to
Quartzsite, they took state 95 north to Parker, AZ. They were so close to the Under-
ground City now, they could taste it. There wasn’t much of a troop detachment at Parker
and they decided to use the Hummers and their weapons to blow through the town in
one fell swoop. By the time the feds reacted from Blythe, they should be where they
could take advantage of the camo paint jobs and netting. Surely, the feds wouldn’t ex-
pect them to head towards Blythe on US 95; they’d probably be looking west on state
62. They all agreed on one thing; it had been sheer luck that they’d gotten as far as they
had.

They made short shift of the troops in Parker and were across the river and headed to-
wards Vidal Junction in nothing flat. Now if they could cover the 17 miles to the 95-62
junction and get turned south before the feds reacted, they were home free. About 3
miles south of the junction, their luck ran out. Here came the Apache gunships. They
pulled the Hummers off the road and under a rock overhang, hoping against hope that
they could get away with it. The three old geezers pulled to the side of the road, got out
of the vehicles and proceeded to waive at the choppers. The Apache has FLIR and
would have spotted the Hummer’s were it not for a rock overhang and the hastily ap-
plied camo netting. The pilots weren’t following SOP and were too high. They circled for
a few minutes, during which time everyone took the hint and got out and waived.

They were so obvious about the whole thing that the pilots must have figured they had
nothing to hide and pointed their birds to the northwest searching for the folks who had
blown through Parker. Everyone hopped back in and they beat feet to the Underground
City, only a few miles away. The pilots must have radioed for an infantry detachment
because they were no sooner off 95 than a column of Humvees and trucks came roar-
ing by headed north. They pulled into the mine area, draped the camo netting and
headed for the mine. It would take the motors a while to cool off and they could only
hope that the government didn’t come searching in their area. While they were sitting
waiting for time to pass, Ron walked up to Gary with a strange look on his face.

349
“I’ve been thinking Gar-Bear and I think that you pulled a fast one on me, you butthead,”
Ron insisted.

“When? What are you talking about?” Gary asked.

“Back in Palmdale on your birthday,” Ron said. “I distinctly remember Clarence saying
‘Gary, tell Ron you’re sorry you’re a butthead’.”

“Yeah, so?” Gary asked. “That’s what I said Ron. My exact words were I’m sorry you’re
a butthead. That’s what he said to say.”

“I’m sorry partner,” Ron apologized, “I thought you pulled a fast one.”

“That’s good pal ‘cause you said, ‘If I was as ugly as you, I’d be sorry too’,” Gary replied,
“Now you’re admitting you’re sorry, so I can only presume that you’re uglier than me.
Beside, partner, we’re pals. Would one pal do something like that to another?”

“I don’t suppose,” Ron said, “But I think you were around Tony too long.”

“What do you mean by that crack,” Gary nostrils flared.

“Nothing much, pal,” Ron smiled, “But you ought to stop and smell what you’re shovel-
ing.”

That broke the tension and everyone was laughing so hard that they completely forgot,
for a moment, about the federal troops searching for them. The afternoon passed into
evening and finally the vehicles were cooled off enough that they would not show up on
the FLIR. No one ventured outside that night and they made do with flashlights and a
couple of lanterns. The next morning, they moved the standby into the mine, placing it
directly below a ventilator shaft. They would still have a heat signature, but hoped it
would escape detection. They took their time and unloaded all of the supplies from the
trailers. Between the propane truck and the bottles, their best guess was that they had
enough fuel for the generator for about 60 days.

How do you cool off a hot engine in a hurry? Diesel engines need a warm up and cool
down period and an enterprising fellow thought that it was a waste of fuel. He had de-
veloped the Orbit engine heat transfer system for diesel tractors and later for smaller
vehicles. Every one of their vehicles was equipped with the system and an extra deep
cycle battery, recharged by the large capacity replacement generators. The Hummers
had a second alternator added, as did the propane truck. It’s all about being prepared.
Every vehicle also had an inverter that could supply 110 volts for a limited time. They
were the John D. Rockefeller’s of the survival set. On the other hand, they didn’t have a
set of those DeLorme maps, now did they? No matter what you have, you’re always go-
ing to need what you don’t have. It might just be oversight, or it might be lack of funds
as besets so many survival minded people. Or, it might just be that you put it off, pre-
suming that you have lots of time to get it later.

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°

“We should have stayed in Texas,” Clarence thought out loud.

“Why’s that Clarence?” Ron asked.

“Well, how are we going to get to Crawford by December?” Clarence asked.

“We would have stuck out like sore thumbs in Texas,” Ron said. “They speak a different
language down there. All those y’alls and such.”

“That’s not true Ron,” Gary objected. “I was down in Texas for a couple of weeks chas-
ing what’s her name’s butt and it took me a month getting back to speaking English after
I got back to California.”

[Watch it Gary, you already started one fight over barbeque!]

“So what’s next on the agenda?” Ron asked.

“I think I’ll order some of those DeLorme maps and have them sent to me c/o General
Delivery, Blythe, California,” Gary replied.

“Yeah right and drive a camo’d vehicle into Blythe to pick them up,” Ron said.

“Well, how’s about we drop someone off near Blythe and send them into town to buy
another vehicle?” Gary asked. “We’re going to need supplies and stuff anyway. And, we
can get some paint and repaint the propane truck.”

“We wouldn’t have this problem if you’d have used paint we could wash off, Gary” Clar-
ence suggested.

“And the first good rain storm and what then Clarence?” Gary asked.

Things were certainly back to normal. The three geezers were going at it tooth and toe-
nail, all in the spirit of fun, of course. Roy got elected to go to Blythe and he did what
any normal man would do; he bought a Dodge just like the ones they already had. Got it
tricked out, too, just like the other 51 Dodges. Well, except for the fuel tanks, and that
Orbit gadget, but close counted, he figured. Gary ordered the DeLorme maps over the
net and used a debit transaction to pay for them. It wasn’t his best idea. The feds had a
flag on his Wells Fargo account and the transaction popped up out of nowhere after
several months of inactivity.

“Well, here’s another fine mess you’ve gotten us into, Stanley.” Ron said. “How are you
going to pick up those CD’s?”

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“It’s another nice mess, not another fine mess and I’m not,” Gary said.

“Then how do you propose to get them?” Ron asked.

“Damon doesn’t seem to have much to do these days,” Gary observed, “He needs to
keep sharp. He can steal them.”

There was something to be said for notoriety. How many people could claim that they
were on the President’s personal hit list? That’s what this was all about wasn’t it? Dubya
being PO’d because Gary had asked him if he’d won the war on terror yet? Like George
Bush gave a crap about some people he’d met a long time before and handed out med-
als they didn’t really deserve for political expediency. As soon as the troops had figured
out that the trio and their private army had disappeared from Palmdale, they’d pulled out
anyway. And, sometime shortly after the attacks on the FEMA camps had stopped mar-
tial law had been rescinded. The people they’d shot up in Parker were there simply to
guard the bridge.

There was still a lot of militia activity around the US, but the government had given up
on arresting people. They simply took their firearms and let them go. The people in the
camps were discharged a few at a time so as not to attract attention. The federal gov-
ernment could not be seen as being weak. Gary could have gone to the post office and
picked up the map CD’s. Even though the feds had a flag on his account, no one was
assigned to watch for the flags and by the time someone would have noticed, he could
have picked up the CD’s 50 times over.

Stealing the CD’s however brought the Postal Inspection Service into the matter. Con-
gress empowered the Postal Service “to investigate postal offenses and civil matters
relating to the Postal Service.” Through its security and enforcement functions, the
Postal Inspection Service provides assurance to American businesses for the safe ex-
change of funds and securities through the US Mail; to postal customers of the “sanctity
of the seal” in transmitting correspondence and messages; and to postal employees of
a safe work environment. Forget about the “Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom
of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds,” stuff,
theft of mail was considered a serious problem. They hit a dead end; Damon had worn
gloves and left no forensic evidence.

Finally, someone turned on a radio and found out that not only had martial law been re-
scinded, but also that the feds has assumed some militia group was responsible for the
fiasco at Parker and had stopped looking for the culprits. Everyone decided that they’d
better get their behinds back to Palmdale, the election was only about a month off and
Gary wanted to vote against Kerry and Edwards. Gary was even having second
thoughts about going to Crawford. It just wasn’t worth it. Maybe, if the Democrats won,
he’d be better off spending that bullet on Kerry. BTW, Kerry and Edwards won.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 12 – Home Again

“It nice to be home again,” Gary reflected.

“It is that, partner,” Ron admitted, “You weren’t serious about shooting Kerry were you?”

“I might if I thought I could get away with it, but I guess not, no,” Gary admitted.

“At least he asked Congress to repeal USA PA I & II,” Clarence added.

“I didn’t hear him suggesting they repeal the AWB,” Gary said. “And, I’m not holding my
breath. Didn’t hear him say anything about cutting taxes, either.”

“At least we have utilities back,” Ron pointed out, “So we won’t be spending an arm and
a leg for propane.”

“What do you mean we?” Gary asked. “You mean you, as in me, right?”

“Maybe they’ll resume Social Security payments Gar-Bear,” Ron suggested.

“I’m sure they will Ronald, that’s a plank in the Democrat platform,” Gary agreed, “But
unless Linda starts getting rent on that building, you guys won’t have enough to go
around. I don’t care one way or another, Derek brought that gold and we never needed
it, so I put it back in the basement. Hell, I don’t mind paying; it’s still blood money as far
as I’m concerned.”

14Feb09…

On the 4th Anniversary of Clark’s futile attempt to take over power in the US, John Kerry
sent a bill to the House to formally outlaw all semi-automatic firearms. Bush’s Executive
Order hadn’t been a formal Executive Order and wasn’t being enforced. Kerry insisted
that those semi-automatic shotguns were as much of an assault weapon as the guns
included in the AWB. Thanks to Bush’s heavy-handed tactics, the Democrats once
again had clear majorities in both houses of Congress and CNN was speculating that
the amendment to the AWB would pass. With ages ranging from 65 (almost 66) to 68,
the three old geezers weren’t so sure they were up to any more fighting. Their firearms
were all safely tucked away in the armory under the propane tank and they didn’t figure
they had much to worry about.

The members of the Palmdale Militia had all found jobs and life was pretty much back to
normal in the US. LA and the other cities had long since started to rebuild and everyone
was either working in the AV or down below. Gary had been right about their disability
payments, they had resumed and they even got some back payments. Linda and her
sister were in fat city, the tenant had been depositing the rental payments in an escrow

353
account over the past 4 years and the account had a balance of $480 thousand plus in-
terest. Clarence wasn’t in very good shape, however, Cal IPERS had never recovered
from the market. But, he had the money Gary had given him, as did Ron, and just about
everyone was in great shape financially.

The economy was getting marginally better too, so Gary went down to Van Nuys and
arranged to sell all of the gold. He had 86 bars left and sold them at $1,625 an ounce.
They delivered the $55,900,000 in an armored truck.

The United States Treasury had released Federal Reserve Notes in denominations of
$500, $1,000, $5,000, and $10,000. All of these circulated among the public, but pro-
duction has long since ceased. According to the Bureau of Printing and Engraving: “Alt-
hough they were issued until 1969, they were last printed in 1945.” However, if you
happen to have any of these big bills, the Treasury will still honor them at face value.

Gary ended up with 2,404 inches, give or take, stacked on top of each other, of $100
dollar bills. They were stacked from floor to ceiling in the basement, 3 layers deep. A
bundle of 100 new bills is 0.43” thick.

Regrettably the Congress passed the new AWB and lots of Americans became crimi-
nals overnight. Did anyone really believe that a Browning semi-automatic shotgun was
an assault weapon? The Democrats and liberals did, but then those names were nearly
synonymous in the minds of many. Now, Gary was sort of what one might call a liberal
Republican. At least he wasn’t two faced about it like some Democrats he could name:

One way or the other, we are determined to deny Iraq the capacity to develop weapons
of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. That is our bottom line. – Presi-
dent Bill Clinton, Feb. 4, 1998

If Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose is clear. We want to se-
riously diminish the threat posed by Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction program. –
President Bill Clinton, Feb. 17, 1998

Iraq is a long way from [here], but what happens there matters a great deal here. For
the risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use nuclear, chemical or biological weap-
ons against us or our allies is the greatest security threat we face. – Madeline Albright,
Feb 18, 1998

He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he has ten times since 1983. –
Sandy Berger, Clinton National Security Adviser, Feb, 18, 1998

[W]e urge you, after consulting with Congress, and consistent with the US Constitution
and laws, to take necessary actions (including, if appropriate, air and missile strikes on
suspect Iraqi sites) to respond effectively to the threat posed by Iraq’s refusal to end its
weapons of mass destruction programs. Letter to President Clinton, signed by – Demo-
cratic Senators Carl Levin, Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and others, Oct. 9, 1998

354
Saddam Hussein has been engaged in the development of weapons of mass destruc-
tion technology which is a threat to countries in the region and he has made a mockery
of the weapons inspection process. – Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D, CA), Dec. 16, 1998

Hussein has ... chosen to spend his money on building weapons of mass destruction
and palaces for his cronies. – Madeline Albright, Clinton Secretary of State, Nov. 10,
1999

There is no doubt that ... Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons programs.
Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and
may be back to pre-Gulf War status. In addition, Saddam continues to redefine delivery
systems and is doubtless using the cover of a licit missile program to develop longer-
range missiles that will threaten the United States and our allies. Letter to President
Bush, Signed by: – Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), and others, Dec 5, 2001

We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a tyrant and a threat to the
peace and stability of the region. He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and
is building weapons of mass destruction and the means of delivering them. – Sen. Carl
Levin (D, MI), Sept. 19, 2002

We know that he has stored secret supplies of biological and chemical weapons
throughout his country. – Al Gore, Sept. 23, 2002

Iraq’s search for weapons of mass destruction has proven impossible to deter and we
should assume that it will continue for as long as Saddam is in power. – Al Gore, Sept.
23, 2002

We have known for many years that Saddam Hussein is seeking and developing weap-
ons of mass destruction. – Sen. Ted Kennedy (D, MA), Sept. 27, 2002

The last UN weapons inspectors left Iraq in October of 1998. We are confident that
Saddam Hussein retains some stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons, and that
he has since embarked on a crash course to build up his chemical and biological war-
fare capabilities. Intelligence reports indicate that he is seeking nuclear weapons... –
Sen. Robert Byrd (D, WV), Oct. 3, 2002

I will be voting to give the President of the United States the authority to use force – if
necessary – to disarm Saddam Hussein because I believe that a deadly arsenal of
weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave threat to our security. –
Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Oct. 9, 2002

There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is working aggressively to devel-

op nuclear weapons and will likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years ...
We also should remember we have always underestimated the progress Saddam has
made in development of weapons of mass destruction. – Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D, WV),

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Oct 10, 2002

He has systematically violated, over the course of the past 11 years, every significant
UN resolution that has demanded that he disarm and destroy his chemical and biologi-
cal weapons, and any nuclear capacity. This he has refused to do. – Rep. Henry Wax-
man (D, CA), Oct. 10, 2002

In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hus-
sein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile deliv-
ery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary
to terrorists, including al Qaeda members ... It is clear, however, that if left unchecked,
Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical
warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons. – Sen. Hillary Clinton (D, NY),
Oct 10, 2002

We are in possession of what I think to be compelling evidence that Saddam Hussein

has, and has had for a number of years, a developing capacity for the production and
storage of weapons of mass destruction. – Sen. Bob Graham (D, FL), Dec. 8, 2002

Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dicta-

tor, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous threat because
he is so consistently prone to miscalculation ... And now he is miscalculating America’s
response to his continued deceit and his consistent grasp for weapons of mass destruc-
tion ... So the threat of Saddam Hussein with weapons of mass destruction is real... –
Sen. John F. Kerry (D, MA), Jan. 23. 2003

You hear all those Democrats talking about WMDs in Iraq? So Bush invaded and they
weren’t there, right? Who did they blame? Does the name Bush come to mind?

Getting an education seems to mellow some people out. In some ways, it had that effect
on Gary. In law school, he’d gotten 438 out of a possible 440 points on the Civil Rights
section of the final exam in Constitutional law. He’d skipped the one question because it
was based on his teacher’s personal views on the justification of war. The teacher said
that there was no justification for war. I wonder what Elliott was doing on December 7,
1941? Gary knew what he was doing now; they’d locked him up in a nut ward and
thrown away the key back in the late 1970’s. Maybe Gary’s liberal side explained why
he was a soft touch at times. This was not one of those times, however.

They had brought out a new drug that partially restored the circulation in his hands and
feet and after a couple of months he’d regained some of the feeling. Gary was really
fired up over this AWB thing and he was itching to do something about it. But, what
could he do? The pill didn’t seem to fix his brain, so that damage was probably perma-
nent. At least he had company; Sharon was starting to lose her short-term memory as
well. She’d walk into the office and ask, “What did I come here for?” He didn’t hazard a
guess. Over a 30-year plus span, he’d learned never to second-guess his wife. It was a
hard learned lesson, to be sure.

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Did you ever get a headache? I mean a real headache; one of those that started today
and ended the middle of next week? Gary was getting ‘one of those’ just thinking about
the implication of Kerry’s additions to the AWB. A lot of thoughts passed through his
pain-wracked mind including the thought that he should have gone to Texas like he’d
originally planned. He walked down to Ron’s with every step making his head hurt even
worse.

“Ron, do you feel like going to Texas after all?” Gary asked.

“Crawford?” Ron asked.

Gary could barely nod his head, “Yes.”

“What’s the matter Gar-Bear, you don’t look too good?” Ron commented.

“Headache,” Gary half whispered.

“Go home and take 4 Vicodin and call me in an hour,” Ron advised. “If you still feel that
way in an hour, the three of us will hit the road just as soon as you’re able.”

The Former Presidents Act, P.L. 85-745, 72 Stat. 838, as amended, 3 USC § 102 note,
makes provision for a monetary allowance for former Presidents, payable monthly, at an
annual rate equal to that of the head of an executive department as defined in 5 USC
§101. The allowance is not paid during any period when the former President holds an
appointive or elective office or a position in or under the Federal government or the Dis-
trict of Columbia government at other than a nominal rate of pay. The Act also provides
for selection, compensation and status of office staff for former Presidents, as well as
provision of appropriately furnished and equipped office space. A widow’s allowance is
also provided for the widow of each former President at a rate of $20,000 per annum,
paid monthly, if she waives the right to every other annuity or pension to which she is
entitled under any other Act of Congress. This allowance continues until the last day of
the month before she dies or remarries before age 60, and is not payable for any period
during which she holds an appointive or elective office or position in or under the Feder-
al government or the District of Columbia government at other than a nominal rate of
pay. In addition, the Act authorizes appropriations for security and travel related ex-
penses for each former President and the spouse of each former President, where the
former President or spouse was not receiving lifetime protection by the United States
Secret Service under 18 USC § 3056(a)(3); where the protection of the Secret Service
expired at its designated time; or where the protection provided by the Secret Service
was declined prior to authorized expiration in lieu of these funds.

Where did it say how much protection? Well folks, the GSA needed over 3 million to
protect 5 ex-presidents, so it must be a lot of protection; maybe as many as 10 or 12
agents per president, or, maybe fewer plus expenses.

357
“Ron, I still have the headache,” Gary said.

“Take 4 more Vicodin and if you survive, call me,” Ron laughed and hung up.

358
 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 13 – On The Road, Again

“Ron, I still have the headache,” Gary said.

“Must be getting better Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “It’s been 2 hours.”

“Nah, it took me an hour to get to the phone,” Gary said.

“Well, you’ve got a problem then Gary,” Ron said, “You’re almost up to a lethal dose of
Tylenol.”

“Ok, I’ll just take one more,” Gary said. He did, one at a time, for 4 times. 9 grams of Ty-
lenol will either cure you or kill you, by the way (LD50= 7 grams/24 hours). It turns into a
milky white syrup in the liver and clogs it up. But, if you live, you might get over the
headache. [Maximum allowable dose of Tylenol per 24 hours is 4000 milligrams (8 extra
strength) LD50 is 7,000 milligrams (14 extra strength) There is a treatment for an over-
dose. It’s Acetylcysteine and you don’t want have to take it. One name for it is Muco-
myst by Bristol Myers-Squibb. It makes you empty your stomach, quick. It tastes and
smells awful.]

The following Wednesday, the headache was finally gone. They took the Dodge that
wasn’t camo’d but had had the extra tanks and Orbit gadget installed after they’d re-
turned home and headed for Texas. Oh and Gary had been out and about the day be-
fore. He had everything he’d collected in a small paper bag, about the size of a lunch
sack. He’d also thrown in a box of latex gloves. They took their Winchesters, Vaqueros
and a single M-24 SWS with them on the trip; all were ‘legal’ firearms, except for the
suppressor and they left it in Palmdale.

It took them 3 days to get to the Crawford ranch. They couldn’t get very close to the
house, but Gary didn’t seem to care. They found a small patch of woods and Gary got
out the M-24, put on the latex gloves and grabbed his lunch sack. From the sack, he
removed several cigarette butts, a 7.62×51 rifle casing, a note and a screwdriver. He
used the cheap Target screwdriver to stake the note to a small tree, dumped the ciga-
rette butts in a partially scattered pile and sat down to wait. Ron and Clarence looked at
the note in amazement and a broad smile slowly spread on their faces. They hadn’t re-
alized that Gar-Bear was such an Arnold fan. Eventually George and Laura appeared at
the front of the home to drive to town. Gary aimed high and sent a round crashing into
the home, about a foot above their heads. He ejected the round from the M-24, and
then went to where it had fallen and switched the casing with the casing he’d brought
along.

The note? Arnold had a favorite line and had used it in several of his movies. It simply
said, I’ll be back. The cigarettes came from the Mall near Movies 10 where people went
outside to smoke. The screwdriver came from Target and the shell casing from a hand-
ful Gary had bought at a gunshop in Lancaster, purportedly to reload. Gary had been a
big fan of CSI and decided that since he was going to leave clues, he ought to try and

359
control the scene as much as he could. They stopped at a rest area and he threw the
brand new sneakers into a trash receptacle and put his Laredo’s back on. He even per-
suaded Ron to pull into a tire shop and upgrade the tires on the pickup to Michelins. He
even took them shopping and bought them new changes of clothes and genuine Stet-
son hats; white of course.

“Clarence, even if they catch us, there’s nothing to tie us to that shooting,” Ron chuck-
led. “Gary, I thought you wanted to kill the SBO.”

“I did Ronald McDonald,” Gary admitted, “But he’ll probably get neck strain looking over
his shoulder. And who knows, maybe we will come back.”

“Where do you want me to point this truck, Washington?” Ron asked.

“Nah, Kerry is making a speech in Atlanta, claiming credit for rebuilding the city,” Gary
said, “So drive to Atlanta.”

They picked up I-20 and headed to Atlanta. Kerry was scheduled to make his address
at Ebenezer Baptist Church, followed by a tour of the newly rebuilt downtown area. How
the church had escaped the blast was anyone’s guess, maybe God had a hand in it.
Presidents sometimes drove their Secret Service details nuts.

Assassinations and Attempts in US Since 1865

Lincoln, Abraham (president of US): Shot April 14, 1865, in Washington, DC, by John
Wilkes Booth; died April 15.

Seward, William H. (secretary of state): Escaped assassination (though injured) April

14, 1865, in Washington, DC, by Lewis Powell (or Paine), accomplice of John Wilkes
Booth.

Garfield, James A. (president of US): Shot July 2, 1881, in Washington, DC, by Charles
J. Guiteau; died Sept. 19.

McKinley, William (president of US): Shot Sept. 6, 1901, in Buffalo by Leon Czolgosz;
died Sept. 14.

Roosevelt, Theodore (ex-president of US): Escaped assassination (though shot) Oct.

14, 1912, in Milwaukee while campaigning for president.

Cermak, Anton J. (mayor of Chicago): Shot Feb. 15, 1933, in Miami by Giuseppe
Zangara, who attempted to assassinate Franklin D. Roosevelt; Cermak died March 6.

Roosevelt, Franklin D. (president-elect of US): Escaped assassination unhurt Feb. 15,

1933, in Miami.

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Long, Huey P. (US senator from Louisiana): Shot Sept. 8, 1935, in Baton Rouge by Dr.
Carl A. Weiss; died Sept. 10.

Truman, Harry S. (president of US): Escaped assassination unhurt Nov. 1, 1950, in

Washington, DC, as 2 Puerto Rican nationalists attempted to shoot their way into Blair
House.

Kennedy, John F. (president of US): Shot Nov. 22, 1963, in Dallas, Tex., allegedly by
Lee Harvey Oswald; died same day. Injured was Gov. John B. Connally of Texas. Os-
wald was shot and killed Nov. 24, 1963 by Jack Ruby.

Malcolm X, also known as El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz (black activist): Shot and killed in a
New York City auditorium, Feb. 21, 1965; his killer(s) were never positively identified.

King, Martin Luther, Jr. (civil rights leader): Shot April 4, 1968, in Memphis by James
Earl Ray; died same day.

Kennedy, Robert F. (US senator from New York): Shot June 5, 1968, in Los Angeles by
Sirhan Bishara Sirhan; died June 6, 1968.

Wallace, George C. (governor of Alabama): Shot and critically wounded in assassina-

tion attempt May 15, 1972, at Laurel, Md., by Arthur Herman Bremer. Wallace paralyzed
from waist down.

Ford, Gerald R. (president of US): Escaped assassination attempt Sept. 5, 1975, in

Sacramento, Calif., by Lynette Alice (Squeaky) Fromme, who pointed but did not fire
.45-caliber pistol. Escaped assassination attempt in San Francisco, Calif., Sept. 22,
1975, by Sara Jane Moore, who fired one shot from a .38-caliber pistol that was deflect-
ed.

Jordan, Vernon E., Jr. (civil rights leader): Shot and critically wounded in assassination
attempt May 29, 1980, in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Reagan, Ronald (president of US): Shot in left lung in Washington by John W. Hinckley,
Jr., on March 30, 1981; three others also wounded.

It was a mighty dangerous job being president or a leader of any sort. Missing from the
list was Medgar Evers. On June 12, 1963, as he was returning home, Medgar Evers
was killed by an assassin’s bullet. John Lennon’s name wasn’t on the list either, proba-
bly because he was a British musician. Neither was Larry Flynt’s, but that sort of made
sense. Bush’s name would probably end up on the list and if Gary had anything to say
about it, so would Kerry’s.

The Secret Service is very through. They remove mailboxes, weld manhole covers, sta-
tion snipers along the route and do their best. In a city like Atlanta, they’d probably have
the local police and Georgia state patrol. On the other hand, Kerry was flying into and

361
out of Atlanta and jet aircraft are most vulnerable during landing. They just had to beat
Kerry to Atlanta. And, it’s easier to talk about than do, you must realize. A 747 ap-
proaches at about 185 knots and lands at about 150-155 knots. That’s a pretty tricky
shot. Add a shot to take out a second engine on the same side and the numbers go off
the scale. However, Gary had done some other shipping that he hadn’t mentioned to
anyone except Ron and Clarence. The two FIM-92A’s had cost him an even quarter of a
million apiece plus another $50 grand to disable the IFF feature. They were tucked
away in the camper shell and a person would have to practically dismantle the shell to
find them.

The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has four parallel runaways in an

east-west configuration. They arrived in Atlanta a day ahead of the visit and checked
out the airport from all sides. They concluded that Air Force One would land on the
longest runway. The weather report said the wind was from the northwest at 12mph.
They found a likely spot at Forest Hills Memorial Gardens and looked around for a mo-
tel. They were up bright an early the next morning and headed to the Cemetery.

The pilots of Air Force One are some of the best in the world make no mistake about
that. They can handle emergencies that most pilots only worry about in their sleep. The
two Stinger missiles hit the left engines of the aircraft just as it was approaching the
outer marker. The second missile, the one Ron fired, caused the left wing to explode
and the aircraft rolled into the ground just short of a terminal building. They left the
launchers lay, got in their pickup and headed to the airport to see what that fire was all
about. The police had immediately sealed the airport and they couldn’t get in to observe
their handwork. They went back to the motel and called it a day.

“I thought we’d see more security on the approach path,” Ron said.

“They were rolling into the cemetery pretty good,” Gary said, “I hope they didn’t spot the
truck.”

“We’ll know soon enough,” Clarence lamented, “It’s been nice knowing you guys.”

“I think we ought to stay in Atlanta a few days, Clarence,” Gary smirked. “See the sites
and pay our respects to the late President.”

“It was a shame about all of those reporters,” Ron commented.

“Yeah right,” Gary laughed, “Purely breaks my heart, it does. I hope there were a lot of
them on that plane.”

“You’re quite the President killer Gar,” Ron said, “You got Clinton in one of your stories
as I recall and now Kerry.”

“Don’t forget Bush,” Gary replied, “I told him I’ll be back.”

362
“You’re nothing but an anarchist,” Ron said.”

“I am not,” Gar insisted. “The term anarchy comes from the Greek, and essentially
means ‘no ruler.’ Anarchists are people who reject all forms of government or coercive
authority, all forms of hierarchy and domination. They are therefore opposed to what the
Mexican anarchist Flores Magon called the ‘sombre trinity’ – state, capital and the
church. Anarchists are thus opposed to both capitalism and to the state, as well as to all
forms of religious authority. But anarchists also seek to establish or bring about by vary-
ing means, a condition of anarchy, that is, a decentralized society without coercive insti-
tutions, a society organized through a federation of voluntary associations.

“Anarchism is an expression of the struggle against oppression and exploitation, a gen-

eralization of working people’s experiences and analyses of what is wrong with the cur-
rent system and an expression of our hopes and dreams for a better future. This strug-
gle existed before it was called anarchism, but the historic anarchist movement (i.e.
groups of people calling their ideas anarchism and aiming for an anarchist society) is
essentially a product of working class struggle against capitalism and the state, against
oppression and exploitation, and for a free society of free and equal individuals.”

“Huh?” Clarence responded.

“I may be a lot of things Ronald,” Gary said, “But I ain’t no socialist.”

“That’s right Ron. Gary is a patriot,” Clarence added. “I wonder if I’ll get a cell with a
window.”

“All the same, I think we should get the hell outta Dodge,” Ron suggested.

“We already did that, remember?” Gary laughed. “You said so. All right, we’ll leave to-
morrow and take turns driving. We can be in Palmdale in 48 hours driving around the
clock.”

The next morning, they got on I-20 and headed west, stopping only to relieve them-
selves and occasionally for fuel. That was a lot of stops because of Ron’s ‘water pills’.
But, they were back in Palmdale in time to catch the coverage of the president’s funeral
and see a rebroadcast of Edward’s swearing in. Edwards made a speech, if you could
call it that, vowing to bring the terrorists who had shot the plane down to justice. This
was just another example, he claimed, firearms in the hands of the American public be-
ing responsible for another tragedy. He called for the banning of all firearms in private
hands. That’s right John, everyone has a Stinger or two in their basement or gun cabi-
net.

Congress wasn’t convinced. Their mail, the telegrams, the emails and the phone calls
were running 10 to 1 against their previous bill. It was probably some gun nut that had
shot the president’s plane down, too. They introduced a bill, all right. It repealed every-
thing back to and including the original AWB, pretty surprising for a Democratic Con-

363
gress. The measure passed by a 75% margin in both houses of Congress and when
Edwards vetoed the bill, they overrode the veto. The character of their mail then
changed. Now the public was demanding they also repeal the Gun Control Act of 1968.
This time, the mail was running 20 to 1 so they repealed the law. Edwards didn’t even
bother to veto the bill; Congress was listening to their constituents with their hearts ra-
ther than their heads.

With the repeal of the GCA of 1968, America returned to how it had been since 1928.
You didn’t really need a sawed off shotgun or short barrel rifle, or machine gun or sup-
pressor. But, if you thought you did, you could always register them, pay the $200 and
go on about your business; state law permitting, of course. Some of the state laws were
so repressive that they defied reason. All a person had to do was go to the NRA’s web-
site to see how repressive they were. Our three pals were talking about moving to
someplace where the laws were a little less repressive than California’s, like Arizona or
Nevada or Colorado. Nevada got the nod this time. Gary didn’t know squat about Neva-
da, but his friend told him the gun laws were pretty liberal. Gary dug out his old road at-
las and looked. He saw a place called the Black Rock Desert about ½ way between
Winnemucca and the state line; and to the east a little ways, something called Desert
Valley. Maybe one of those would do, it wouldn’t hurt to look at least. Maybe his friend
would give him some sound advice on the subject.

364
 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 14 – About Nevada

“Jeez Gar-Bear, is all of Nevada owned by the government?” Ron asked.

“More than 80%, according to the Nevada Visitor’s Guide,” Gary replied. “As one of the
least-populated states, and the most mountainous, Nevada is also one of the most hike
able. About 85% of the state is public land, and there are more than 300 mountain
ranges, many of them reaching above the timberline.”

“No wonder they have wide open gun laws, who’d want to live here?” Clarence asked.

“Lots of people moving to Nevada from California, I’ve been told,” Gary answered. “But
mostly around Reno and Vegas. This state just goes straight up and straight down.
Screw it, Arizona, here I come.”

“Holbrook?” Ron and Clarence groaned in unison.

“Nope. Saw me a place south of the Grand Canyon called Coconino Plateau. Isn’t
owned by the government either,” Gary said. “It’s Indian country, too. There are all kinds
of reservations around there. The reason the area hasn’t been more developed is a wa-
ter problem. I figure I can buy 5,000 acres from the state and put in a ranch.”

“What are we going to do for water?” Clarence asked.

“Find a seep, dig a well, make an artificial lake,” Gary responded.

“They gonna let you do that?” Clarence asked.

“I don’t know and I don’t care,” Gary said, “I’m going to fence the whole thing in with a 8’
fence and put up signs that say ‘Private property-KTFO’.” (Use your imagination.)

Arizona wouldn’t sell Gary the land so he bought a section from a man looking to retire.
The place had a well, too but the ranch was only 640 acres, not 5,000. The fence cost
as much as the ranch, but the signs were cheap. They lived in the Airstreams while their
homes were being built, er, assembled. They all put in basements (just one, apiece) and
set triple-wide mobile homes on them. Gary bought a used tractor and blade and slowly
pushed the dirt around to make a place for the lake he talked about.

01Oct09…

“I like this place guys,” Gary said, “Close enough to town to get supplies if we need
them and pretty quiet.”

“Only since you quit putting in the lake, partner,” Ron laughed.

“Lake’s all done Ron, we just got to dig a big enough well to fill it,” Gary responded.

365
“Then, we can stock it and do some fishing. It’s time we got to enjoy our retirement.”

“What kind of fish you gonna put in the lake, Gary?” Clarence asked.

“I don’t care, I hate fish anyway,” Gary replied, “You and Ron figure it out. There aren’t
going to be any fish until there’s water, though, so you have plenty of time.”

The well ended up being a deep well on the order of 1,500’ deep. The pump went to the
bottom, if Gary understood right, and pushed the water to the surface. It was a 6” hole
and put out lots of water. The lake was bigger than he thought and there were low spots
on some on the places where he’d graded. He was mighty busy for a few days and
even had to turn the pump off so the water wouldn’t run over. He guessed the lake was
about 60’ deep in the center, but there was plenty of shallow water where they could
wade out and fish. Gary told Ron and Clarence to go find some fish so that they could
fish come spring. They ordered largemouth and yellow bass, crappie, and walleye. Gary
loved fishing for crappie and walleye, as it turned out; he just didn’t like to eat them, es-
pecially the crappie. He said he might eat a walleye if it came out of cold water and he
thanked the guys for not getting any trout, the idea of a fish that was looking at you
while you ate it seemed to bother him.

Of course, you should stock a large pond/small lake in the spring, but if you do it in the
winter, the fish have longer to grow. Gary’s little lake turned out to be about 160 acres,
leaving plenty of room to graze a beef or two and maybe even buy back some horses.
He was going with Clarence this time and make sure that ‘Salina’ was at least a mare.
Ponds differ from lakes in that they are shallow enough for plants to grow from shore to
shore, even in the middle of the water. Since the sunlight plants need generally doesn’t
penetrate deeper than 2 meters, a pond is less than two meters in depth and a lake is
deeper than two meters.

Gary also figured that they needed a root cellar to store food and such in. At least, that’s
what he told Ron and Clarence. When the 100’ square root cellar was finished, Ron and
Clarence checked it out. They didn’t see any roots, just a room with ‘armory’ on the door
and two small rooms labeled men and women, a kitchen and 6 bedrooms. The large
open area held tables, chairs, a TV and another room was labeled ‘radio shack’. The
last room was labeled ‘storage’, but when they looked, all it held was Gary’s food sup-
plies and the extra ammo. They never did find any roots.

“So, where are the roots, partner?” Ron asked.

“Well, it’s not really a root cellar guys, it’s a storm shelter,” Gary replied.

“What kind of storm shelter needs a radio room and kitchen and a Geiger counter?”
Clarence asked.

“I’m not going to be caught flat footed again,” Gary said. “You should think about putting
your guns in the armory, too.

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“Where did you put the generator and the propane tank?” Ron asked.

“That’s separate,” Gary explained, “Got its own little shelter and there’s a water filtration
system that draws water from the big well.”

“I suppose you have an air purifier and everything, huh?” Ron continued.

“A shelter without pure air would be like a gun without bullets, Ron,” Gary smugly re-
plied.

“Didn’t see no hospital or doctor’s office,” Clarence huffed, “Slip up did we?”

“Maybe you did, but I didn’t,” Gary replied. “Ran out of space, so I put all that stuff in a
spare bedroom.”

“Which bedroom?” Ron asked.

“The one with the medical supplies in it,” Gary replied sarcastically.

“Why did you build 6 bedrooms anyway?” Clarence asked, “There are only we three
couples.”

“So I’d have someplace to put the medical supplies, and other stuff I forgot to make
places for,” Gary replied.

“That makes sense, I guess,” Clarence muttered.”

“So when are we going back to Texas Gar-Bear,” Ron asked.

“We’re not Ron,” Gary laughed, “I just want him keep looking over his shoulder and al-
ways wondering if I’ll be back.”

“I thought you didn’t like Bush,” Clarence said.

“Hell, I voted for him twice, what’s not to like?” Gary said, “I just wanted to let him know
that not everyone agreed with some of the things he did. I agreed with Marshall, it prob-
ably was just PTSD.”

“Then why all the steps to make sure they couldn’t track us down?” Ron asked.

“I may be slow, but I’m not stupid,” Gary replied. “Besides, they didn’t know I was kid-
ding and neither did you, am I right?”

“You sure put a lot at risk for a joke brother,” Ron cracked, “I don’t know whether to be-
lieve you or not. But, what you did is just sick enough to be a joke.”

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“I knew you’d understand, Ron,” Gary said, “Really, if I never set foot in Texas again, it
will be too soon.”

“Then what plans do you have for this place?” Ron continued.

“We need to go back to California and get the rest of our things for one thing, and rent
out the houses or sell them,” Gary suggested.

“What things, Ron asked, “We brought our clothes and we have all new furniture.”

“Oh our Mk-19’s, Ma Deuces and other weapons,” Gary explained, “And all the ammo
we can carry.”

“Why don’t we just send Derek our Power of Attorney and let him handle that?” Clar-
ence suggested. “And some of the Militia can bring us the other stuff, they have plenty
of trailers.”

“Suits me guys,” Gary said, “We’ll go to town, execute the PoA’s and FedEx them to
him. Start making up a list of what you want and I’ll add it to my list.”

“You have a list already?” Ron asked.

“Sure, take a look,” Gary said pulling the list from his back pocket. They looked at the 3-
page long list.

“Where are you going to store all of this crap,” Ron asked.

“Well, I figured I’d build another root cellar,” Gary said. “And let’s face it, I bought the
propane delivery truck and the other stuff, so I want them too.”

“Better have them build two back to back 8-stall garages over the second root cellar,”
Ron said “and we can store all of the vehicles in one place.”

“I was thinking more like a 100’ square building Ron,” You know me, I may want more
vehicles.”

“Naturally you’re going to connect the root cellars with a tunnel, right?” Ron asked.

“Naturally,” Gary agreed. “Anyway the 3 spare bedrooms are really a miniature hospi-
tal.”

“Why,” Ron scoffed, “doesn’t that surprise me?”

“I wouldn’t have any idea,” Gary said. “And once we get the second shelter built, we can
use the original storage room as a dormitory.”

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15Dec09…

“I think we’re going to have to hire some ranch hands guys,” Gary said.

“Why?” Ron and Clarence asked in unison.

“Well…I bought the adjacent section and we need someone to put in a fence and tend
the livestock,” Gary replied. “We need a barn, too, Clarence and I are going horse
shopping.”

“We are?” Clarence responded, surprised.

“Well of course, we have the tack you didn’t sell like I told you to so we need horses,”
Gary smiled. “And, if we get Ranch hands, we’re going to need horses for them too. I’d
prefer to hire Indians.”

“What tribe?” Ron asked.

“Comanche. You get to Texas, find some Comanche cowboys and tell them John Cof-
fee “Jack” Hays wants to hire them,” Gary said. “I guarantee you they will come running.

“Why’s that?” Ron asked, “I always meant to ask you about that 3rd fake ID.”

“Jack Hays was an Indian fighter and a Texas Ranger,” Gary explained, “The Coman-
che’s don’t much like him. They’ll come.”

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 15 – The People

Ron and Clarence weren’t about to drive to Texas and look all over the place for a few
ranch hands. They got on the phone and placed ads in several Texas papers.

“Employment opportunity for a few good men. We need several cattlemen of Comanche
heritage. Married men with families only. Late 30’s to mid-40’s. Small northern Arizona
ranch. Military veterans only. Good pay. Contact JC Hays. 1-602-555-1212”

The phone number was a cell phone; they didn’t bother putting in regular phones. Be-
sides, they had the satellite phones and used one of them to access the net. And, the
generator? They were brand new Cummins diesel 230kw units set up in a modular con-
figuration that powered the whole ranch. While a single generator would have supplied
more power than our three friends could ever possibly use, Gary had all of that blood
money burning a hole in his pocket. He had the Cummins dealer install a modular set
up controlled by a computer. They would normally run one generator set and if demand
exceeded the available power, the second would kick in and the third if it was neces-
sary. The 4th was a replacement.

While the sets Gary bought were the DSHAD rated at 209kw prime and 230kw standby,
he was looking ahead. The best he could understand was that each unit was good for a
minimum of 500 amps prime power. And that meant they could power approximately
twenty buildings. He ordered the F173 - Quiet Site II Second Stage and 24 hour dual
wall day tanks with the 500 gallon subbase fuel tanks. They were kept topped off from
the large storage tank manifold with electric fuel pumps.

Because they had the huge generator setup, and natural gas was unavailable, a pair of
30,000 gallon propane tanks were purchased and buried. Diesel storage looked as if he
could burn up more of the blood money and he buried 5 40,000 gallon Containment So-
lutions double walled fiberglass tanks which were plumber together in a manifold to
serve all the buildings for the present and future.

The plumbing contractor had put in the septic system at the same time the well was
drilled and it would handle the effluent for up to 25 buildings. Commercial power was
available and it was routed through a massive ATS,

Like Ron and Clarence didn’t know what Gar-Bear was up to. Hah! They talked about it,
decided he was at it again and just kept their mouths shut. Real good acting job they
done when they’d realized early on that the root cellar was a bomb shelter, too. They
figured they deserved an Oscar for that performance.

The papers had almost refused to take the ads because they claimed they violated the
EEO laws. Ron had bluffed his way through claiming that it was going to be an Indian
heritage project and the each of the criteria was a legitimate condition of employment.
By early March 2010, they had four families lined up to move to the ranch. They put in 4
more triplewides, on basements, finished up the second root cellar, had the huge gar-

370
age put in and had hosted the folks from California. They were on a roll.

Funny, none of the new cousins even brought up the JC Hays name. Although the tribe
came to be known historically as Comanche, they called themselves Nermernuh, or
“The People.” In 1995 the Comanche had an enrolled tribal population of 9,722 scat-
tered across the United States. For them the pow-wow, or dance gathering, had be-
come an important method of maintaining Comanche kinship. The People are also unit-
ed by pride in their rich Comanche heritage, an element that has remained constant
through years of tumultuous change. They had long since anglicized their names, to
blend in. The four men were all cowhands and willing to work hard, considering the
handsome wage Ron offered and the free housing.

“Gentlemen, our first order of business is putting in shelter for the livestock, fencing the
second section and acquiring horses,” Gary said.

“You sure weren’t kidding about a small ranch,” Bill Parker, the oldest of the four re-
marked, “Down in Texas, this spread would barely qualify as a garden plot.”

The other men were Jonas Parker, Robert Parker and James Parker and they insisted
that they were not related except in heritage. Bill being the oldest was designated as
foreman and Gary told him to work with the contractor to put in shelter for the livestock.
Gary had a posthole digger for the 60-year-old Ford tractor and told them he wanted
every third fence post to be a wood post. The bottom half of the fence was to be pig
wire with 3 strands of barbed wire above it.

“What’s with the Cyclone fence?” Robert asked, “This place looks like a military post.”

“We like our privacy,” Ron said.

“Didn’t see any power lines, where do you get the electricity?” One of them asked.

“The power lines are buried and we have our own generator bank.” Clarence replied.

“What about phones?” another asked.

“Cell phone service is spotty, so there’s a satellite phone in each home,” Gary ex-
plained, “Along with a computer hooked into our network. Take it easy on phone usage;
it costs $3 a minute for calls. The other phone is for ranch calls; we have our own phone
system.”

“What about schools and such?” James asked.

“You can home school the children, haul them 30 miles to a school, or I’ll hire a certified
teacher. Of course, there’s always the Indian School in Phoenix,” Gary replied.

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“If it’s all the same to you, we’ll take the teacher,” Bill said.

“So who’s the boss here?” Robert asked, “The ad said something about JC Hays?”

“We’re a corporation, named The Three Amigos, Inc.” Gary explained.

“I understand you want horses?” Bill asked.

“Pintos or Paints,” Gary said, “We have to keep up an illusion that this is an Indian herit-
age project.”

“Well if it’s not an Indian heritage project, just what is it?” Bill quickly asked.

“Let’s just say it’s a specialized retirement community,” Gary answered.

04Jul10…

Gary had the lawyer down in Phoenix dealing with the state and they had worked out an
agreement for Gary to purchase the 7 adjoining sections, putting the original section
right smack dab in the middle. The attorney had persuaded the state that it was a re-
tirement community development. Under Edward’s hands off policy, the economy was
turning around too, and gold was down to $800 or so an ounce. According to the satel-
lite TV, former President Bush, the younger, had been briefly hospitalized for what was
described as a nervous disorder.

And Derek called to wish his Dad a happy 4th. He’d hemmed and hawed but finally ad-
mitted that things weren’t too hot in Palmdale. Gary suggested that he sell the houses
and generators and pack it in and move to Arizona. He should sell the propane tanks,
too because there was always a market for used propane tanks. Be sure, Gary said, to
clean out that armory and bring the 4th hummer and the 5-ton trucks. Gary immediately
contracted for 4 more basements and 4 more triple wides. The barn was done, the sec-
tion fenced and they had a nice herd of horses, including some older mares for the
three old geezers and their wives.

Four basements? You’re forgetting Lorrie and Amy. Ron’s kids were welcome, exclud-
ing Kevin. Perhaps that’s what the backup electrical system was so large. The next
‘large’ purchase was 25 cords of firewood for each home or 225 cords; 95% hardwood.

13Sep10…

The convoy of vehicles started with some moving trucks, followed by Gary’s 5-ton trucks
followed by Derek and Damon in their pickups. Followed by Lorrie and David in a van
and Amy and the two kids in the hummer. Derek hadn’t said anything about Amy and

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Lorrie coming, but Sharon was sure glad to see them. Gary had 4 triple wides put in. It
took a while to unload the 2 moving trucks; Gary hadn’t realized they’d accumulated so
many weapons and munitions. Derek mentioned that the homes had all sold well and
that they were all fairly well off. The generators and tanks hadn’t gone for nearly what
they cost, however and the check he handed Gary wasn’t that large.

“Use the fork lift and stack that stuff in the garage Derek,” Gary suggested. “Our ranch
hands don’t know anything about the root cellars and I’d like to keep it that way for
now.”

“You built more bomb shelters?” Derek asked.

“No, but I sure do have a couple of nice 100’ square root cellars,” Gary laughed. “The
garage was built above the second one.”

“Yeah, I’ll bet,” Derek laughed.

“So what’s going on in the big bad world out there?” Gary asked.

“Well, you’ll be interested to know that Dubya is in the hospital,” Derek commented.
“Supposed to be for a nervous condition, but FOX ran a story that there had been an
assassination attempt on his life around the time that Kerry was assassinated. They
said he hadn’t been the same since.”

“Do tell,” Gary said, “Hadn’t heard anything about it.”

“Whoever did it was pretty clever Dad, the FBI doesn’t have a clue who did it,” Derek
said.

“What about the people who killed Kerry?” Gary asked.

“Same story, not a clue,” Derek said.

“Some people just think they can go around killing president’s Derek, you know how it
is,” Gary replied.

“No, I don’t,” Derek said, “But maybe someday I’ll understand. Wasn’t that around the
time that the three of you took off for a few days?”

“You know, I think you’re right Derek,” Gary said, “I seem to recall getting home right
after the assassination of the President.”

“But you wouldn’t know anything about it right?” Derek said.

“Right, Ron and Clarence and I were up here in northern Arizona looking for someplace
to move to,” Gary said.

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“Who is the woman in the other trailer Dad?” Damon asked.

“She’s a school teacher Damon. She teaches the ranch hands’ kids,” Gary explained.

“What’s her name?” Damon asked.

“Stacy,” Gary said, “She has quite a head of red hair doesn’t she?”

“Nice legs,” Damon observed.

“Really?” Gary said, “I didn’t get that far. Her son’s name is Ryan.”

“Married?” Damon asked.

“Widowed,” Gary said.

01Nov10…

Gary had thought it over and had another triplewide put in. He figured that the school-
teacher needed something bigger than an Airstream to live in. He had the contractor
erect a one-room schoolhouse too, to get the kids out of the garage. Nice little commu-
nity they had here. They got an irrigation system going for some of the land and grew
crops to feed the livestock and plant gardens. But mostly, the men just went riding, final-
ly used to riding horses. They fished some, but threw them back to grow. It certainly
was peaceful out here in the middle of nowhere. Their most frequent visitor was the
propane deliveryman.

My Fellow Americans, Edwards opened,

Yesterday, Nov. 7, 2010 - a date which will live in infamy - the country of South Korea
was suddenly and deliberately attacked by North Korea.

The United States was at peace with that nation and, at the solicitation of North Korea,
was still in conversation with the government and its leaders looking toward the removal
of nuclear weapons from that country.

Instead, the government of North Korea attacked South Korea without warning. As you
may recall, General Wesley Clark recalled our troops from Korea during the brief time
he was in power. President George Bush continued that policy.

It is my intention to support the government of South Korea. To that end, I have ordered
the 7th Fleet into Korean waters and will immediately begin dispatching several Divi-
sions of Army and Marines to Japan where they will mount an invasion of Korea to re-

374
capture the country.

The People’s Republic of China should be forewarned that if they intervene in this con-
flict, we will respond as if it were an attack made directly on the United States by the
People’s Republic.

Thank you and good night.

“Well, Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “What do you think of that?”

“I think he should get a new speech writer, Ron,” Gary laughed, “He started out sound-
ing like FDR and ended up sounding like JFK. Hush up, I want to see how CNN spins
this one.”

“…and President Edwards used the very words of his Democratic predecessors, FDR
and JFK when he announced the attack,” the commentator said. “You heard the presi-
dent mention former president Bush. Unfortunately, the former president remains hospi-
talized with what some have suggested are paranoid delusions. Informed sources tell
CNN that Mr. Bush believes that former Governor Schwarzenegger attacked him and
intends to return to finish the job. The former Governor could not be reached for com-
ment. His office said that they didn’t know where the former Governor was; he’d just told
them, ‘I’ll be back’ and left.”

Ron was laughing so hard tears were running down his face. Clarence just had a grin
from ear-to-ear. Gary, by contrast, had gone to his desk and pulled out the list of their
emergency supplies. He needed to do some shopping from the looks of it and fast. With
the population of the ranch, they had only a little over a month’s worth of food supplies
and not nearly enough propane.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 16 – Mad Rush

They had all of their survival supplies from California, Gary had seen to that. However,
those supplies were not geared to having Gary’s four kids, grandchildren and the ranch
hands and their families. Gary got on the phone the next morning and ordered the pro-
pane tanks topped off and 2 more 40,000-gallon diesel tanks installed. He offered a
premium for immediate installation, plumbing and filling. Then, he called a grocery
wholesaler. He ordered two semi loads of food, again offering a premium for immediate
delivery. Gary, Ron and Clarence did the grocery shopping for everyone on the ranch
as an excuse to get out. Gary knew exactly what everyone ate and it was a snap to or-
der the right things. There was a walk-in freezer in the second shelter, so Gary ordered
8 sides of beef and several cases of pork primal cuts and chickens cut and wrapped.

Immediate turned out to be a week in the case of the propane tanks, but the grocery
wholesaler made his delivery in 3 days. You should have seen the look on the drivers’
faces when Gary started counting out those hundred dollar bills. Gary made sure to get
a receipt in case the drivers didn’t make it back to the warehouse with all that cash. He
called Springfield and ordered 8 Super Match rifles, and told them he needed them in a
big hurry. Like in ‘I’ll pay double to get them right now, we’re sort of in a hurry’. They
said they would ship them on a company plane to a dealer in Flagstaff, throw in 160 20
round magazines and a scope of his choice. All they had in stock were 8 SA9805 Super
Match, McMillan Marine Corps camo fiberglass, Douglas stainless steel barrels at
$3,149 each, but they had lots of scopes. Gary went with the 6-20×50 Mil Dot BDC
Government Model and asked if he could buy more at cost. They said yes and he or-
dered 60 extra at $400.

According to their website, “The variable power 6-20×50 scope has a patented mil dot
reticle with unlimited range finding capability and bullet-drop compensation, with cali-
brated rings for 7.62mm and 5.56mm, as well as a blank ring you can calibrate for any
caliber yourself. The 30mm tube with external target knobs has adjustable side focus,
patented internal bubble level, flip-up lens covers and proprietary multi-coated lenses. It
is 100% waterproof, fog proof, and has a nitrogen filled spare battery compartment. It
has .50 caliber shockproof-guarantee. It has eleven individual brightness settings for
rapid target acquisition even in extreme, near dark conditions. Lifetime warranty.”

They had 6 M-40’s, 6 M-24SWS, Gary’s 3 M1A’s, Ron’s Super Match plus Clarence’s
FAL. That gave them a total of 25 7.62×51 caliber rifles. There were the 5 M107s, 2
TAC-50s, 4 M-24 SWS, 48 M16A3/203’s, 48 MP5/10SD6 submachine guns, the 6
Thumpers, 48 10mm S & W 1026 pistols, and an assortment of other firearms. Oh, they
had both M-2’s and both Mk-19’s too and all of the ammo. Don’t forget the Claymores
and the Interceptor body armor. Let them commie SOB’s come.

Raymond ‘Ray’ Benton was on his way to visit the Grand Canyon when he heard the
President’s speech on his pickup radio. He drove the rest of the way to the Grand Can-
yon and got a motel room. Ray, as you may recall, had two rifles in his collection that
were his pride and joy. The first was a Springfield Armory M1A, M-21, tactical rifle. The

376
second was a Remington 700, M-24 SWS. He wouldn’t have minded having a .50 cali-
ber, but they were way too pricey. The Army had made him switch to the M-9 Beretta
and he didn’t like it. He carried the M1911A1 for too many years and the lightweight M-9
just didn’t feel right in his hand. And, the cartridge stunk. He’d taught himself to double
and triple tap when he fired, to ensure he brought down the target. He had one of the
weapons, another ‘lost soldier’ and lots of magazines for it, but he still preferred the .45.

Ray had thought about moving to Wyoming, but had never gotten around to it. He had
his retirement check directly deposited into his Wells Fargo checking account and just
bounced around, living on the cheap and saving his money. He sure wanted a Barrett
like his pal Scott had, but refused to spend the money. Now, here he was in the com-
munity of Grand Canyon and things didn’t sound too good. He hung around for a few
days and learned of a reclusive group of folks south a ways on the Coconino Plateau.
Some folks said it was a retirement community and a couple said that they were just a
bunch of crackpot survivalists. Somewhere along the way, Ray had picked up a mutt,
too. That dog purely loved him and he was beginning to love her.

Ray stopped at the gate and honked his horn. These guys must be survivalists, he
thought, the place looked more like an Army post than a retirement community. Three
old men came riding up on horses. Well, maybe it was a retirement community; they
looked to be around 70 years old. The three old men dismounted, tired their horses to
the fence and one of them unlocked the gate.

“My name is Gary Olsen,” Gary said, “What can I do for you?’

“Hello Mr. Olsen,” Ray said, “My name is Ray Benton. I heard about you folks up in
Grand Canyon and decided to look you up.”

“We don’t have any work, if you’re looking for work,” Gary said.

“I’m not, Mr. Olsen,” Ray assured Gary, “But the news doesn’t sound good and some of
the folks up in Grand Canyon expressed the idea that this might be a survivalist com-
munity.”

“Do we look like a bunch of survivalists to you Ray?” Gary asked.

“I don’t know; what does a survivalist look like?” Ray asked and immediately regretted.

“Butthead, huh?” Gary said, “Well, let me open the gate and you can come in for lunch.
We know about buttheads around here, don’t we guys.”

“You and Clarence are the only buttheads I know,” Ron said, “Me, I’m just a man of
good humor.”

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Ray followed them back to the housing area. Looked like a small community with sever-
al triplewide and several doublewide mobile homes. Or, did they call them manufactured
housing these days?

“Can you ride a horse Ray?” Gary asked.

“I suppose I could manage, why?” Ray replied.

“Grab one of those pintos and toss a saddle on it and we’ll give you the grand tour,”
Gary said.

Ray grabbed a rope, tossed it around a pinto’s neck, led it to the barn and saddled it. He
mounted up and joined the guys.

“The short fat guy who looks like me but is uglier is Ron Green,” Gary said. “The other
guy is Clarence Rawlings.”

“Nice to meet you guys,” Ray said.

“Short haircut,” Gary observed, “Are you ex-military?”

“Retired Army Sergeant Major,” Ray replied. “Did my tours in Nam and ended up a sup-
ply Sergeant at Ft. Campbell.”

“You a shooting man Ray?” Gary asked, “Most soldiers are.”

“My hobbies are gun collecting, hunting and camping,” Ray replied.

“So you have a couple of weapons, huh?” Gary said.

“A few yes,” Ray replied non-committedly.

“We have a couple ourselves,” Gary said, “Besides these Colts and Winchesters. The
property is 9 sections. I built a lake over there and we stocked it with fish. Got us a barn,
a one room schoolhouse and a large garage.”

“I don’t see any power lines, you use kerosene lamps?” Ray inquired.

“Generators, Ray,” Ron responded, “And propane for heat and cooking and the like.”

“I didn’t see any tanks guys, I just presumed…” Ray started to say.

“There’s a lot more here than meets the eye Ray,” Gary said.

They tossed hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill and invited everyone for lunch. Ray
noticed a redheaded woman and thought she was something to behold. He asked Clar-

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ence her name and the name of the guy that seemed to be pestering her. The woman,
Clarence said, was Stacy Marie Williams née Benton and was a widow and their school
teacher. The guy pestering her was Damon Olsen, Gary’s son. Clarence suggested that
Ray introduce himself, she’d probably be grateful. She wasn’t interested in Damon but
he just didn’t seem to get the message. Well, why not, Ray was more than willing to
rescue a damsel in distress.

“Hi,” Ray said, “I’m Ray Benton and Clarence said your name was Stacy.”

“You look like an Army man with that haircut,” Stacy said, rising to take Ray’s offered
hand. “I’ll talk to you later Damon,” she said dismissing him.

“Retired,” Ray said, “Thirty years in the Army.”

“My late husband was in the Army,” Stacy said, “Got killed in Desert Storm.”

“I’m sorry Stacy,” Ray said, “its always hard on the families. Maybe that’s why I never
got married.”

“What brings you here Ray?” Stacy asked, “We’re sort of off of the beaten path.”

“I was on my way to the Grand Canyon and heard the president’s speech,” Ray replied.
“Got a motel room and hung around for a while. Then I heard about this place. Some
folks said it was a retirement community and some said it was a bunch of survivalist
nuts.”

“I don’t know that they’re nuts Ray,” Stacy responded, “But they’re pretty well prepared
for a bunch of old guys. That Gary seems to have a lot of money and he’s not shy about
spending it on preparations. They just put in two additional propane tanks over there.
You can see where the sod is disturbed.”

“You’re a school teacher, huh?” Ray asked.

“I was a clerk in a grocery store, but went to night school and got my degree,” Stacy ex-
plained. “I heard about this job and it paid pretty well, so I moved to Arizona.”

“From where?” Ray asked, “If I’m not being to nosey.”

“Jackson, Wyoming,” Stacy replied.

“Really? I thought a lot about moving to Jackson Hole Valley, but just never got around
to it,” Ray said.

“I’m really glad you didn’t Ray,” Stacy said softly.

“Any children?” Ray asked.

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“One. Ryan is 25, Ray,” Stacy replied, “He was supposed to get an appointment to West
Point, but it fell through. So, he did the next best thing and joined ROTC in college. He’s
on active duty now with the Army.”

“Gee, I hope he doesn’t get caught up in this North Korea thing,” Ray said.

“I suppose that depends on how long it lasts and a lot of others things,” Stacy replied.
“Right now, he’s in jump school. After that, he’s going to go through Ranger training.”

“Already do his IOBC?” Ray asked.

“Yes,” Stacy said, “They sure get a lot of training don’t they?”

“Excuse me for interrupting,” Gary said, “Where are you planning on spending the
night?”

“I didn’t really have any plans one way or the other Gary,” Ray replied.

“We have some empty Airstreams,” Gary said, “Why don’t you put up in one of them for
a couple of nights. We might have something we’d like to talk to you about.”

“Well, sure, if it’s no trouble,” Ray said. “What about my dog? Will she have to stay out-
side?”

“Take the far trailer,” Gary said, “I have a dog and she lived in it with us for months while
we were on our road trips.”

“This place seems secure enough, but I have some firearms in my camper shell,” Ray
said, “Is it okay to leave them there or should they be put up somewhere?”

“Actually it’s up to you Ray,” Gary said, “We have an armory if you’d prefer to put them
in it, but it doesn’t matter.”

“An armory?” Ray asked. “Well, maybe I should put them in there. You might be sur-
prised at some of the weapons I have, though. That won’t be a problem will it?”

“You might be a little surprised yourself, Ray,” Gary laughed. “Tell you what, I won’t wet
my pants if you won’t.”

“Ok, Gary,” Ray responded, “But be forewarned, I have a M16A2.”

Gary just laughed and shook his head. The three of them helped Ray take his guns to
the armory. Ray’s jaw was practically on the floor from the time they opened the door to

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the stairs leading to the shelter. When they opened the Armory and he saw their little
gun collection, he almost wet his pants despite their agreement. They were better
equipped than an infantry platoon, maybe two. And their M16A3’s were suppressed and
had M203’s installed. The only thing he had that they didn’t was the M-21. He put his
‘pitiful’ weapons collection in a rack and just plain stared at the Barrett rifle.

“You like that one Ray?” Gary asked.

“Who wouldn’t?” Ray said, “My friend Scott has one, but not as tricked out as yours.”

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 17 – The Numbers Game

According to the CIA Fact book, China covers 9,326,410 square kilometers and had an
estimated population in 2004 of 1,298,847,624. The United States was slightly larger,
covering 9,631,418 square kilometers and had an estimated population in 2004 of
293,027,571. Why is that important? Well, thermonuclear war is a numbers game. Re-
member, those figures date back 6 years to around 2004. The Julang 2 missile was
successfully tested by the PLA Navy in Jan. 2001 and a successful test of the undersea
launch system was conducted in October 2001. This system is planned for installation
on the Type 94 SLBM submarine currently under construction at Huludao. Each PLA
Navy “boomer” is designed to carry 16 JL-2 missiles in a sail like configuration similar to
Russian designed Delta class boats. The first JL-2 armed Type 94 is expected to be
operational in 2002. The Chinese DF-31 is a road mobile, nuclear tipped SCUD like
missile, which is nearly impossible to find, much less destroy. It is intended to counter
the USAF B-2 bomber in a “limited” nuclear war scenario where China and the US
would only kill a few million people on each side. If deployed in large numbers, the DF-
31 could pose a significant first strike threat against stationary military targets inside the
US homeland, such as the MX missile fields and the single B-2 bomber base.

What had China done in the past 6 years? How many of those submarines had they
built and deployed? How many of the DF-31 and those DF-5 missiles did they have?
But wait, are you really, really sure? Nikita blinked; that’s why JFK got away with his
threat. Would the Chinese leaders blink too? In a pig’s eye! The Chinese carefully cal-
culated their potential losses. Any way you calculated it, they would end up with a lot
more people than the US. It was the numbers game, folks, just the numbers game.

Thanksgiving Day 2010…

The three men had talked it over and had decided to invite Ray to move to the ranch.
Ray had a sizable 401k account and he was thinking about cashing it out and buying a
home. Stacy told him that he might want to cash out the account, but that he should
hang on to the money. He had taken her advice and Promise and he stayed in the Air-
stream. Ryan was ‘home’ on leave between Jump School and Ranger school. He only
had 4 days, including travel time, but he wanted to see his Mom and meet this new boy-
friend of hers. Ron and Linda decided to make it a super Thanksgiving and had Brenda,
Jennifer, Paula, Kevin and John out to the ranch for the holiday. Mutt had let Gary pay
for tickets for Britney, Aaron and Erik to visit their Dad. That turkey never got cooked.

At precisely 9am PST, the Chinese boats launched their missiles, as did the mainland
Chinese forces. NORAD barely had time to issue a warning and for Edwards to use the
football before the first missiles struck. The cities along the coasts were the first to be
hit. The missiles launched against Cheyenne Mountain took longer to get there, but,
when they hit, the mountain fell. As far as the US military was concerned, it was moot.
They’d launched everything they had at China and had sent the ELF messages to the
boomers. In 6 hours, unless the boomers received a recall message, they would launch
their missiles too. But, in order to send a recall message, there had to be someone alive

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to send it, right? And, he or she had to want to stop the missile launches.

Missy had jumped on the bed and awakened Gary. He got up to go to the bathroom and
padded to his little office for a smoke. His new computer had a card that let him connect
to the satellite TV receiver and watch whatever channel the receiver was tuned to. In
this case, it happened to be CNN. The sun was up and Gary looked at the clock.
10:02am MST. He stubbed out the cigarette and was thinking about going back to bed
when the EAS logo appeared on his computer screen. He sure didn’t need any coffee to
wake up this morning.

“CNN has received word that the US is under missile attack from…” and the screen
went blank. Missile attack? As in inter-continental ballistic missiles? Thermo nuclear
ICBM’s?

“Sharon get dressed and head to the shelter,” Gary yelled.

“I was just putting the turkey in the oven,” Sharon protested.

“Use the oven in the shelter,” Gary yelled, “The US is under missile attack.”

Gary slipped on his clothes, grabbed his Winchester, Ruger and hat and coat and went
from door to door to warn everyone. Everyone was already headed to the bomb shelter
aka storm cellar aka root cellar and he went back and grabbed Sassy, Taffy and put
Missy on a leash. He went to the shelter, as fast as his two legs would carry him, clos-
ing doors behind him. Gary flopped down in a chair to catch his breath. Most of the
women were trying to keep a stiff upper lip, but their tears gave them away.

“Everybody get in ok?” Gary asked.

“You were the last one Gar-Bear,” Ron said.

“Who attacked the US?” Gary asked.

“Has to be Russia or China,” Ray suggested, “They’re the only countries with a major
nuclear capability.”

“My money’s on China Dad,” Derek said, “Edwards as much as dared them over Ko-
rea.”

“You were in Korea for 13 months, Derek,” Gary recalled, “What do you think is going
on over there?”

“South Korea is toast,” Derek replied.

“Hmm, anything on TV?” Gary asked.

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“Deader than a mackerel,” Ron said.

“Well someone dig out the Geiger counter and keep an eye on the radiation level,” Gary
suggested.

“What about the radios, Gary?” Clarence asked.

“Assuming those were nuclear ICBM’s, we won’t hear anything for a minimum of 343
hours,” Gary said.

“He’s right Clarence,” Ray added, “If there is a lot of radiation around, it will take about 2
weeks to die down.”

“I need a drink,” Ron said.

“There’s all that bourbon we bought in Kentucky and never drank,” Gary said, “How
about it Clarence, let’s get drunk. That will make our problems go away until tomorrow
when our wives kill us.”

“Never mind,” Ron said.

“I thought so butthead,” Gary said loud enough for everyone to hear. “I’ll get you an iced
tea and some sweet and low, partner.”

“My friend Scott and his wife Susan were on the way,” Ray said, “I sure hope they’re
ok.”

“When were they supposed to get here?” Gary asked.

“Around noon,” Ray said. “That would put them around Flagstaff.”

“Your buddy Scott,” Gary asked, “Is he usually prepared for trouble?”

“He was bringing his guns so we could go shooting,” Ray answered, “And he has BOB’s
in the car.”

“Is he usually early, on-time or late?” Gary continued.

“Early,” Ray said, “He’s a retired Air Force Chief Master Sergeant, by the way.”

“He’s probably already on 64 or 180,” Gary said. “What’s the radiation level like?”

“Normal so far,” Damon piped up.

“Ok. Ray, drive your truck up to the highway and I’ll follow you. I assume he knows that
old Ford truck of yours, right?” Gary asked, not waiting for an answer. “Park your truck

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so he’ll know which road to take and I’ll follow and bring you back.”

Ray drove the Ford to the highway and parked it just off the road. Gary followed and
drove him back to the shelter. If Scott and his wife weren’t too ‘hot’ the shower in front of
the door would wash off enough radiation so they could enter the shelter. Otherwise
Gary wasn’t sure what they would do. He left his older, spare, CD V-700 Geiger Counter
sitting by the door right under the intercom. All he could do was hope that this Scott guy
would get the message.

The turkey was starting to smell good and Gary suddenly realized he hadn’t taken his
meds or eaten any breakfast. Time flies when you’re having fun. He excused himself,
made up a pill caddy from the drug supplies and opened a fresh bottle of insulin. He
took his shot and pills and went searching for something to eat. Sharon had made Mon-
key bread so he put some of it on a paper plate with some butter, refilled his coffee cup
and grabbed a fork.

He had a Diamond D130J mounted on a mast for his receivers, and despite what he’d
said earlier, decided to see if anyone was on the radio. He turned on his Yaesu VR-
5000 scanning receiver, switched the antenna to that radio and waited for it to pick up a
signal. Eventually, he heard part of a conversation, but the interference was pretty bad.
All he made out was ‘China’ and ‘entire country’. Great, entire which country? Or, did it
really matter?

“Hello,” the intercom announced. “This is Scott. Am I in the right place?”

Gary looked at Damon. Damon looked at the Geiger counter and said, “Nada.”

“Scott who?” Gary asked over the intercom.

“I’m Ray’s friend from Denver,” Scott replied, giving very little away. “And, we’re not
hot.”

Gary opened the door. “Get in here then if you have your weapons. Otherwise, let’s go
get them.”

“Got them,” Scott replied, “This is my wife Susan. Ray here?”

“Right over here you reprobate,” Ray said.

Scott, Susan and Ray went to a corner of the dinning/recreation room to visit. Stacy
walked up and asked if Ray would introduce her to his friends. Ray rose, made the in-
troduction and she joined them.

“New girlfriend Ray?” Scott asked.

“Stacy is the school teacher here at the ranch,” Ray explained. “She has a son, Ryan

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who is here on a short leave between Jump School and Ranger School. Actually, we
just met a few weeks ago. Although, I suspect that Ryan will be staying until he can get
orders.”

“What about all of these others folks?” Scott asked.

“Gary, Ron and Clarence are the seniors floating around,” Ray explained. “You met
Gary. Ron is his size, but a little heavier. Clarence is the tall, slim black fellow over
there. As luck would have it, all of Gary’s kid’s live here on the ranch. Damon, Gary’s
oldest boy, has his kids visiting. All 5 of Ron and Linda’s kids and grandchildren turned
up for Thanksgiving, too. The four Indian looking guys are the ranch hands, all with the
last name Parker. They’re Comanche, and Gary calls them the cousins, although I don’t
believe they’re related by blood.”

“It turns out these guys are sort of survivalists. I finally remembered where I heard
Gary’s name, too,” Ray continued, “I’m pretty sure he’s the guy who caught Wes Clark
when he took over the country back in 2005. Apparently the three are from Palmdale,
California and had an outfit called the Palmdale Militia. Anyway Gary is some sort of a
fanatic when it comes to preparedness. There are two identical 10,000 square foot shel-
ters, one just for supplies. They have 4 generators, radio equipment, enough food for a
small army and an armory that would equip at least a couple of platoons. Man they even
have Ma Deuces, Mk-19’s and 4 ring mount equipped hummers and some 5-ton trucks.
They have more automatic weapons, suppressors and MP5/10SD6’s than you can
shake a stick at.”

“I didn’t recognize the names,” Scott said, “But are these the guys who Bush gave the
Presidential Medal of Freedom to?”

“The very same,” Ray smiled.

“You know Scott,” Ray said, “Only the FBI has those H&K 10mm submachine guns the
guys have so I’d speculate that they would have quite the story to tell if they ever
opened up. Stacy told me that right before I arrived they added 2 extra-large propane
tanks.”

“They were 30,000-gallon propane tanks and they brought in two semi loads of food,
too,” Stacy elaborated.

“Ray you sure can pick ‘em,” Scott said.

[If you want to know all about Ray and Stacy read Mountain Man. - TOM]

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 18 – Two Weeks is Forever

Later, when they were alone. Ray asked if Scott was talking about the survival group or
Stacy. Scott’s reply was concise and to the point. All he said was, “Yep.”

If the experience in 2005 had taught Gary anything, it taught him the value of radiation
detection. Not only did he have a high quality Geiger counter and a backup Civil De-
fense Geiger counter from a bygone era, he had dosimeters and the equipment that
went with them plus a remote sensor mounted on that mast with his Diamond antenna.
His highest range meter was the AMP 200 with an upper limit of 10,000R. With his hun-
ger satisfied and more coffee in him, he began to think more clearly. He got the dosime-
ters from the supply room, zapped them and passed them out. Since the external sen-
sor was showing virtually no increase in the outside radiation, he got the cousins to
gather up the livestock and herd it into the barn. He also ran Ray back to the highway to
get his vehicle and got everyone to put their vehicles in the garage. The radio scanner
was still looking for signals and he noticed that only the more distant signals were ac-
companied with the intense interference. However, there was virtually no local traffic.

Several of the women were well into preparing Thanksgiving dinner when the balloon
went up and most of them had grabbed their turkey or roast or whatever they were pre-
paring and hauled it to the shelter with them. With no significant increase in the back-
ground radiation, Gary suggested that they go to their homes and bring the remainder of
the meals they were working on and they’d just have Thanksgiving Dinner in the shelter.
They did that and the men accompanied them and brought along other things the wives
suggested. By 2pm the food was ready, but no one seemed to have much of an appe-
tite. Concerns over family, friends and perhaps the country as a whole diminished their
appetites. The three old geezers made it their immediate mission to try and cheer peo-
ple up and see that they sat down and ate at least a little food. They cajoled and did
whatever it took to snap the people out of their misery. It was a shame to let the food go
to waste, they said, and the radiation levels weren’t rising so maybe everyone would be
ok.

After everyone ate, Gary got some of the guys to drag out the cots and blankets from
the storage shelter and set them up in what had been the storage room but what now
was a dormitory. They did everything they could to keep the peoples’ moods elevated to
near normal. Ron put a DVD on to play a movie and they got a couple of boom boxes
for the young people to play music on. Gary set up a tub for Cokes and Pepsis and oth-
er beverages, including a couple of six packs of beer and popped some popcorn in the
small theatre type popcorn machine. He also discreetly passed out Xanax to anyone
who wanted one. He gave periodic reports on the lack of increase in the background
radiation and kept reminding everyone that no news was good news.

The truth was that there was a slight increase in the background radiation. Ray and
Scott periodically peeked into the radio shack and they could read the digital scale as
well as the next person. But they went along with the program and were also reassuring
the folks. Gary had spent the money on the Potassium Iodate, too, but until the radiation

387
levels got to a point for concern, or until they began to venture outside for extended pe-
riods of time, it remained in the storeroom.

The shelters were covered by 20’ of compacted earth and had a blast door plus a heavy
door at the top of the stairs. The air was constantly purified and re-circulated, so there
was little cause for concern. Stacy’s son, Ryan, seemed like a responsible young man
and they asked him if he was willing to check everyone’s dosimeters periodically and
maintain a log. Ryan was more than willing to oblige. There was about 11 years differ-
ence in Ryan and Derek’s ages but they seemed to hit it off well and they did have their
military experiences to share, limited as Ryan’s were.

Day 2…26Nov10…

Sleep hadn’t come easy for most of the people so Gary passed out a ‘sleeping aid’ in
the form of 0.5mg of Xanax for the adults and 0.25mg of Xanax for the teenagers who
wouldn’t or couldn’t settle down. For those unaccustomed to the medication, it was a
Godsend, although on future nights Gary resolved to use the 0.25mg tablets if they
were needed at all. For one thing, Xanax was a potent drug and extremely habit form-
ing. Secondly, it left many people with a drug hangover of significant proportions if over
prescribed. And, let’s face it Gar-Bear wasn’t a doctor. He had the latest PDR on CD,
but there is one hell of a lot more to dispensing medicine than the PDR tells you; things
like drug interactions and contraindications, etc. were covered, but medical know how
can’t be printed in a book. For all of the medical supplies and textbooks, it was going to
be a tough situation if anyone got really sick. But, knowing that you didn’t know was half
the battle.

With the increased, but acceptable, background radiation levels they decided to check
on the livestock. They were skittish, but otherwise ok. Ryan dutifully recorded the do-
simeter readings when the cousins returned and they were in good shape according to
the chart taped inside the front cover of the log. For something to do, they dug out the
various radio antennas and assembled them. If the radiation levels remained at an ac-
ceptable level, they would venture outside briefly on the following day and install them
on the mast stubs protruding from the ground and connect the RG213U cables.

There were over 1,000 movies to choose from and several cases of paperbacks for an-
yone who wanted to read. Most folks were too concerned with their present situation
however to be able to sit still for a movie, let alone read a book. Much to Damon’s cha-
grin, Ray and Stacy had paired off and were deeply engrossed in conversation.

“What do you think partner?” Gary asked Ron.

“I don’t know what to think Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “Did you hear anything on that radio of
yours?”

“Not one hell of a lot, no,” Gary replied. “Yesterday, I picked up some partial transmis-
sions. Heard the word ‘China’ and the phrase ‘entire country’ but I have no idea which

388
country.”

“Why don’t we put those antennas up now?” Ron suggested. “That digital thingy doesn’t
show much radiation.”

“I suppose it would be ok,” Gary agreed. “It wouldn’t hurt to add 10’ to the mast for the
antenna I have up and to put up the other antennas. Everything is clearly marked so it
won’t be hard to connect the right antennas to the right cables. If there is going to be
radiation blowing in from the west, I suppose it makes more sense to do it today rather
than to wait until tomorrow.”

“How are you holding up?” Ron asked.

“I’m ok,” Gary said, “I sure hope everyone else is, too. At least we had that practice drill
back in 2005, so I was a lot better prepared this time. What do you think went wrong?”

“Good morning guys,” Clarence said entering the radio shack.

“Good morning Clarence, sleep ok?” Gary asked.

“Like a rock, but I don’t want no more of those little pills, thank you very much. What
was that stuff?” Clarence asked.

“Well, some folks like to call it freeze dried alcohol,” Gary laughed.

“Figures,” Clarence grinned.

“Want to help us put up some radio antennas?” Ron asked.

“Of course,” Clarence replied, “What we got to do?”

“Put that long sucker on two 10’ mast sections and mount it on the west stub,” Gary ex-
plained. “Put the smaller one on two 10’ sections and mount it on the east stub. Be sure
to connect the coaxial cables real tight and throw some tape round the masts and ca-
bles about every 5’, too. Also, add a 10’ section of mast to the center antenna.”

“Come on Ron,” Clarence said, “This shouldn’t take more than 20 minutes.”

“They be working ok, Gary?” Clarence asked.

“Yes, I picked up the police frequencies from Flagstaff,” Gary said. “They didn’t get hit,
but Phoenix took it in the shorts.”

“What about the rest of the country?” Ron asked.

“I haven’t heard much yet,” Gary said. “It appears that it was China who attacked. Ap-

389
parently they had a boomer off each coast and a fair number of ICBM’s. The information
is sketchy at best. There were maybe 100 strikes more or less.”

Day 3…27Nov10…

“Don’t you ever sleep?” Ron asked entering the radio shack pot of coffee in hand.

“Early to bed, early to rise,” Gary replied. “Actually, Ray pulled a shift and Scott relieved
him. They seem to be pretty nice guys, Ron. I think maybe we should invite Scott and
Susan to put up a home here at the ranch.”

“What about Ray?” Ron asked.

“From the way Susan and he have been getting along, I don’t think Ray will need a
home,” Gary chuckled, “But, I could be wrong.”

“How old a guy do you suppose he is?” Ron asked.

“I’d put his age about the same as Sharon’s, so about 63, give or take,” Gary replied.

“And Stacy is about what, 55?” Ron said.

“I think so. If I recall, she was born around 1955 according to her resume,” Gary
acknowledged.

“They make a nice couple,” Ron said.

“They do, don’t they,” Gary agreed.

“Sort of funny when you think about it,” Ron said.

“What’s funny?” Gary asked.

“Ray asking if this was a retirement community or survivalist community,” Ron ex-
plained. “I’d guess you have to say both, wouldn’t you.”

“The day he showed up, I would have agreed with you partner,” Gary nodded, “But right
now, I think we’re all about surviving.”

“How’s the radiation doing?” Ron asked.

“It went up some last night, but I think we’re ok,” Gary replied. “It shouldn’t be enough to
affect the livestock and if they’re ok, we’re ok.”

390
“I guess we didn’t need this shelter after all,” Ron proposed.

“If they’d have hit Flagstaff, you would be singing a different tune pal,” Gary disagreed.
“Over the years, at least according to some of the things I’ve read, the targets moved
more to the military installations and large cities. Flagstaff just isn’t that big.”

“Any more news on where they hit?” Ron asked.

“No, but I suspect LA and ‘Frisco, DC of course, New York, Chicago, and probably Kan-
sas City,” Gary replied.

“Why KC?” Ron asked.

“Big hub for pipelines, et cetera,” Gary answered. “But you can count on places like
Whitman AFB and the big Army posts and Air Force bases getting hit.”

“Whitman AFB?” Ron said, “Oh the B-2’s, huh?”

“Yeah and probably San Diego, Norfolk and Pearl Harbor, too,” Gary added. “For sure
the ten Unified Combat Commands.”

In actuality, the Chinese had expended 120 missiles and had experienced about a 10%
failure rate. Their missiles were evenly divided among the major US cities and military
installations. Most of the missiles that failed were aimed at the cities rather than the mili-
tary targets. In the final analysis, 57 military targets and 51 major cities had been hit.
Had the Chinese had more missiles, they may have been able to fire redundant missiles
at the targets, but they fired everything they had. Conscious of a possible attack by the
other major power, Russia, Edwards had released half of the US land-based and sea-
based missiles against China. Seven Ohio class submarines, each with 24 missiles
were on station. Most of the land-based missiles, no estimate of the count was availa-
ble, successfully launched and hit their targets.

Unlike the Chinese, the Americans launched multiple missiles at the same targets, en-
suring total destruction of those targets. Thus the number of Chinese locations hit was
fewer than the number of US locations hit. The damage to the Chinese locations was
totally devastating while many US cities were less than total losses. America lost about
⅓ of its population during the bombings and aftermath. China lost ½ of its population.
The Chinese still outnumber the Americans by a factor of 3 to one. And since the Chi-
nese had initiated the attack, most of their armed forces were tucked away in shelters
and avoided injury. The Americans lost about ⅔ of their land based military forces and
all of their naval forces in port.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 19 – And Ever...

Day 4…28Nov10…Mt. Weather…

“Just how bad is it?” Edwards asked.

“We’ll probably lose 100 million Mr. President,” The Chairman replied.

“Our military forces?” Edwards questioned.

“All the ships at sea are ok, but we probably lost 10 divisions,” The Admiral continued.
“Mr. President, for the moment, I doubt we have much to fear from the Chinese; they
don’t have a large fleet. But in the long run, they may invade. It’s reasonable to presume
that they had their army under shelter before they launched the attack.”

“I just don’t understand why they attacked us,” Edwards commented.

“Perhaps they took your remarks as a challenge, Mr. President,” the Admiral replied.
“But who knows? I never could completely understand how they think.”

“Any word on how our attack on them went?” the President asked.

“Not until we can get a recon aircraft up, sir,” the Admiral explained. “Cheyenne Moun-
tain and the NSA were total losses. We’re trying to get in touch with our satellites by
other means.”

“Keep me informed Admiral,” the President said. “And Admiral, recall the fleets back to
the US.”

“Yes Sir,” The Admiral replied.

The ranch…Day 4…

“Could I have everyone’s attention please,” Gary asked. “So far the background radia-
tion is less than I expected. It’s elevated, but not so highly that we can’t venture outside
for brief periods to take care of the livestock. We have protective suits, but we’ll wear
them only as a precaution. I repeat; there is no danger from brief periods of exposure to
radiation. You guys do a quick hose down of the barn and around it. The livestock
should be ok.

“There are ample supplies in the storage shelter to meet our needs for the foreseeable
future. I’d appreciate it if you ladies would get together and work out a balanced menu
plan. We have every drug anyone on this ranch takes in the medical supplies. We also
have first aid supplies and other necessities. However, we do not have a doctor. So be

392
extra careful and avoid injuries.”

“Ryan,” Gary continued, “Will check those dosimeters about 3 times a day. So far, no
one has picked up anything more than normal background radiation, perhaps less, ex-
cept for those of us who have ventured outside. And, none of us has anything to worry
about. I can tell you that the US was apparently attacked by China. Flagstaff was not hit,
but Phoenix was. You can probably assume that most of the largest cities in the US
were hit, as were all of the major military installations. We have no idea of the extent of
the damage to any of those places, but remember one thing. Missiles carry far smaller
nukes than bombers, so it could be a lot worse. As soon as the National Command Au-
thority, whomever that might be, makes an announcement, we’ll pass it along. Mean-
while, hang in there.

“You know folks, we survived that mess back in 2005 and the country recovered,” Gary
went on. “If we find ourselves in a defensive situation, we are well prepared to deal with
it. We have more than enough weapons and ammunition for a small army. I can’t tell
you whether or not this country will be invaded. But if it is, we’ll do whatever it takes to
survive. Ray, I noticed that you were particularly fond of those Barrett rifles. Go pick one
out and put your name on it, it’s yours. The TAC-50s are Clarence’s and mine, so hands
off.

“Scott, we have some pretty fancy scopes that will work just fine on your rifle, I’ll give
you one after this meeting. Ryan, you can help yourself to a Barrett, M-24 or M-40. Most
of our handguns are a handful for the ladies, but they should be able to handle those
submachine guns just fine. Because of the children, we’ll keep the weapons, except for
sidearms, in the armory. Ray, I noticed that you have a fine pair of Kimber’s, but if you
want, you can take one of those 10mm handguns. The same goes for the rest of you
men. I’d prefer it if you all wore a handgun at all times. There a 50’ range set up in the
storage room. Pick a gun and get used to it.”

“We do have a few handguns of a lighter caliber if any of you ladies feel the need to car-
ry a weapon.” Ron added.

After the meeting, Ray approached Stacy. “Stacy, if you want a handgun, I have a ser-
vice issue 9mm Beretta,” he offered.

“Will you teach me to shoot it?” Stacy asked.

“Sure,” Ray said, “And since I have 2 of the Kimber’s, I think I’ll ask Ryan if he wants to
carry one of them.”

“I’m sure that he would like that,” Stacy smiled.

Ryan was overjoyed at the prospect of carrying one of Ray’s Kimber’s. The three of
them picked up some ear protectors, frangible 9mm and .45 caliber ammo from the ar-
mory and headed to the range. Stacy was a natural, but Ryan was even better. Of

393
course, Ryan had an advantage over his mother; he’d done a lot of shooting with the
9mm Beretta and the step up to the .45 wasn’t that harsh. Ray wondered what Ryan
would be like with the M-24 SWS he’d picked out and tagged with his name. Ray had
shot Scott’s Barrett many times, but maybe the new Springfield scope would make a
difference. Strangely, Ryan said, “I’ll leave the two of you alone and get back to my du-
ties.” That was a funny way to put it, but Ray realized that he was rapidly getting fond of
Ryan’s mother.

Before the day was over, all of the men who didn’t have a handgun had checked one
out and had become familiar with them. There were plenty of the leather flap holsters for
the 1911’s so they mostly ended up with a pistol belt, holster, 10mm model 1026 and 4
extra magazines in two pouches. Gary gave each of the cousins one of the new M1A
Super Match rifles and told them that as soon as they could get outside, he expected
them to get extremely proficient with them. With those rifles, he said, if they couldn’t
shoot a MOA, it was because they weren’t trying hard enough. They got the message
and chuckled. If they shot that badly, he could have his rifles back and they’d use their
own rifles. Their Marine Corp drill instructors would probably come back from the grave
and take back their Expert marksmanship badges, too. They had only been asked if
they were veterans, not the details of their service.

Day 5…29Nov10…

Through the night, the radiation levels had dropped from being slightly elevated to nor-
mal. Apparently the winds had been in the favor of the residents of the ranch. When the
cousins went to check on the livestock, they took along the CD V-700 Geiger counter
and reported back that the radiation levels were so low that unless more radiation blew
in, the ranch was home free. No one objected when the cousins went to the 1,000-
meter range Gary had had them built some time back to practice. Ray got his new Bar-
rett and Ryan his new M-24 and the two of them, accompanied by Stacy, joined the
cousins to practice.

Gary came along later with an M-24. He set up a silhouette at 1,000 meters and pro-
ceeded to fire 5 rounds at it. The group wasn’t especially tight, about 1.5 MOA and all in
the black, but he walked off muttering, “I could have if I’d wanted to,” whatever that
meant. They were pretty surprised that he could even see that far, even with the scope,
but they made a note not to PO him.

Later that day, the three old geezers returned to the outdoor range. This time the targets
were much closer. The MP5/10SD6’s made short work of those silhouettes too. They
even set up some more targets and practiced their ‘quick draws’ with the Vaqueros. It
was like John Payne had said on his TV show, The Restless Gun (1957), accuracy
came first and speed came second. It didn’t matter how much faster you were if you
couldn’t hit the target. It surely showed who’d practiced his fast draw the most, Gary
was popping it out in about 0.5 seconds (not extremely fast) and he never missed the

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target. Ron and Clarence simply had to practice more, he told them.

The ladies had come up with a menu schedule that proved to be interesting. I guess you
would have to call it the Ethnic Nights menu. It included Mexican, Italian, German,
American and French for Monday – Thursday + Saturday, Pizza on Friday nights and
steaks or roasts on Sundays. Despite the non-existent radiation levels, everyone agreed
to spend their nights in the shelter until the 14 days were up. It being a Wednesday, the
menu was American, fried chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy to be exact with corn
for a vegetable.

“You know what Ron?” Gary asked.

“Tell me,” Ron said.

“Well, if today were Wednesday July 23, 2004, I could stand in my backyard and watch
the hills 2½ miles south of my house burn,” Gary said. “Remember the Crown fire? It
was all over the news.”

“Yeah, just be glad you’re not Clarence,” Ron said, “Those flames were only a mile from
his house.”

“Speaking of Clarence,” Gary said, “He should be happy. We’re having fried chicken to-
night.”

“I thought you liked fried chicken too, Gar-Bear,” Ron raised his brows.

“I used to, but you know what partner,” Gary said, “The idea that it wasn’t an official
meal unless I had a portion of meat 3 times bigger than I could possibly eat got kind of
old. One night Sharon asked me what I wanted for supper. I didn’t give it a thought; we
had about 20 boxes of macaroni and cheese on the shelf. So I said macaroni and
cheese and maybe some green beans to go with it.”

“Yeah so?” Ron asked.

“So, she goes to the store, buys 2 pounds of extra sharp cheddar and some chipped
beef and makes a macaroni & cheese & chipped beef casserole,” Gary explained. “Let
me ask you something, do green beans really come with bacon in the can?”

“Not that I know of, why?” Ron asked.

“That’s what I said, too,” Gary laughed, “But Sharon said ‘well that’s the way you like
them’. I got to thinking and a year before, I mentioned that it might be nice to have ba-
con bits and onions in the green beans once in a great while.”

“So she fixed green beans with bacon and onions in it every time after that?” Ron
asked.

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“No,” Gary shook his head, “Sharon doesn’t like the onions.”

“If you’re done bad mouthing your wife, partner, I think the chicken is done,” Ron re-
plied.

“Don’t say anything to her, ok?” Gary asked.

“I won’t, butthead, but remind me to tell you about some of Linda’s tricks some time,”
Ron grinned.

Day 6…30Nov10…

“Morning partner, what’s new?” Ron asked.

“Shh, listen,” Gary said.

Gary had latched onto a clear channel with his Yaesu radio.

…band of refugees from Los Angeles have attacked Palm Springs. If anyone can hear
my voice, please send help. This is… and the signal abruptly terminated.

“Well,” Ron said, “It sounds like you were right about LA. If there’re refugees and they’re
attacking people, things must be pretty bad out there.”

“I agree Ron,” Gary said. “I’m just glad we didn’t go to Holbrook.”

“I thought that was your favorite town?” Ron laughed.

“Well, at least we’re not on I-40 up here in the middle of nowhere,” Gary explained. “You
would think that people would be better prepared in California for crying out loud. It’s
earthquake country.”

“Well, they must have been somewhat prepared,” Ron said, “That sounded like gunfire
in the background.”

“You know what I mean darn it,” Gary said. “Prepared with food and water. And besides,
Palm Springs is east of LA. Who in their right mind would go east?”

“Where do you want them to go, Palmdale?” Ron asked.

“They did last time,” Gary replied.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 20 – Freedom

With the freedom to get outside, even for a while, the time seemed to pass more quick-
ly. The Marines came pouring out of the 29 Palms base and put a quick end to the at-
tack on Palm Springs. They also put an end to the eastward migration of the people
from Los Angeles and began to transport them north to Ft. Irwin. Apparently Ft. Irwin
was not in the path of the radioactive fallout and it was blowing more to the southeast.
That probably meant that the Marine Corps had abandoned Yuma and moved the popu-
lation further north, perhaps also to Ft. Irwin.

Day 15…09Dec10…

“I would have thought that the Chinese would have hit 29 Palms and Ft. Irwin,” Ron
said, “But I guess not. I wonder where they did hit?”

“You would have thought that the NCA would have been on the radio by now,” Gary ob-
served. “This almost reminds me of 2005.”

“Mr. President,” the Admiral half yelled, “You can’t put this off any longer. You must
make an announcement to the American people to let them know someone is in
charge!”

“In charge of what Admiral?” the President shrugged, “half the Navy is gone, for sure ⅔
of the Army is gone, we lost 50 cities and 100 million people. What do you want me to
tell them? Cheer up, it could be worse?”

“Frankly you wimpy piece of crap, I don’t care what you tell them,” the Admiral respond-
ed. “My resignation will be on your desk in an hour. I’ll go help them myself if I have to.
Kerry must have thought he was bulletproof to choose you as a running mate.”

“I won’t let you quit,” Edwards shouted. “You’re fired!”

“Doesn’t make much difference either way does it John,” the Admiral said, “At the rate
you’re going, I’ll die of old age before I ever see my pension.”

What’s this? A whimp in the White House, er, Mt. Weather? Who would have thought?
Come to think of it, what had John Edwards ever really done but win elections? Don’t
ask me, I have no idea. Madam Clinton wouldn’t have been a wimp. According to A.
Friend, she’d have killed Kerry herself. Did that scene with Edwards really happen? This
is fiction and I get confused.

“As much as I hate doing this, we’re going to have to prepare for a fight,” Gary said.

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“Mount the weapons back on the Hummers. Excluding the children, we have 22 men
and 14 women. The women are going to need to take responsibility for protecting the
children, so that leaves just the 22 men to conduct any operations we might need to un-
dertake. I really don’t believe we can count on anyone outside of this group, at least not
for now. Scott and Susan have agreed to move to the ranch. That means we need to
get them a home and furnishings. We can use the 5-ton trucks to tow the 3 sections of a
triplewide in. But, I figure that the best we can do is pour a slab or strips and use mount-
ing pedestals instead of putting in a basement. We can pick up the furniture first and do
it all in one trip. We should top off all of the vehicles and pull the 600-gallon tanker with
one of the Hummers and refill it. Any suggestions?”

“We should let David’s boys’ drive the Hummer’s,” Bill suggested. “And, why don’t Da-
mon, Derek and David drive the 5-ton trucks? You three and either Ray or Scott can
man the guns on the Hummer’s and the rest of us will ride shotgun.”

“Let’s see, 7 drivers and four gunners,” Gary said. “That would leave us 11 people riding
shotgun. If we have 2 shot gunners in each of the 3 5-tons and 1 in each of the 4 Hum-
mer’s to pass ammo and such that will leave us one person leftover. If we take a pickup
to pull the tanker, it will leave us one short.”

“I’ll drive the pickup and Ray can ride shotgun with me,” Stacy offered.

“I wasn’t planning on taking any of you ladies on this little jaunt,” Gary responded.

“I’ve got a dozen years on YOU Gary Olsen,” Stacy snapped, “And I can drive as good
as any of those boys, so WHY NOT?”

“Uh, I guess Stacy will be driving the pickup and Ray riding shotgun for her, folks,” Gary
said. “Stacy, you CAN drive a pickup with a 6-speed shift I assume?”

The look she gave old Gar-Bear answered that question. The only other thing bothering
Gary was who was going to protect Ray from Stacy. It looked to him like she had her
mind made up on more than one account, and after such a short time, too. Gary missed
the small smile that formed on Ryan’s lips. Ryan knew his mother had waited for a very
long time for just the right man to come along and apparently she’d set her sights on
Ray. It was ok with him; Ray seemed to be like his Dad would have been if he hadn’t
been killed in Desert Storm. Admittedly, Ryan had felt cheated when the promise to go
to West Point fell through, but he’d become an officer despite circumstances. Sure, he’d
wanted to be part of “The Long Gray Line” that was West Point, but they didn’t have a
monopoly on Duty, Honor, Country. He’d do his part, every elected official and military
officer was sworn to “protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign
and domestic,” not the President or Congress.

Day 16…10Dec10…

They departed around 5am, well before the sun came up. They were going to Flagstaff

398
and buy what they needed and if they couldn’t buy it, they planned to steal it. Scott and
Susan had tentatively decided on furnishings and he had her list. Everyone was
dressed in BDU’s, including Stacy, although the uniform didn’t really do her figure jus-
tice. Gary was in the lead vehicle, a Hummer with a Ma-Deuce mounted and Scott was
riding shotgun for him. Gary intended that Scott try to bluff the folks in Flagstaff into be-
lieving that they were a military convoy sent to pick up a triple wide and furnishings or-
dered by a retiring military General. It was pretty thin, but he hadn’t had much time to
think up anything better. However about halfway to Flagstaff, Gary pulled the convoy to
a halt.

“Guys, this will never work,” he said, “Who is going to believe a bunch of guys our age
are in the Army? Let’s get the cousins up on the guns and the three of us will take their
places. Scott, you tell them that we’re retired Sergeants here to pay for the General’s
purchases, if they ask.”

It still strained credulity, but they might pull it off. It was either that, or blast their way
through if there was a roadblock that wouldn’t let them pass. The Army had been run-
ning convoys in and out of Flagstaff since the attack. They didn’t know that. The Flag-
staff cop barely gave them a second look. They hit a likely looking furniture store; all of
the stores were closed, so they loaded the furniture Scott picked out onto the trucks.
Gary collected the tags and added them up. He put down the exact amount plus $500.
Their next stop was a mobile home dealer, also closed. They hooked up to the only tri-
ple wide and because they had purchased all of their trailers from this same dealer,
Gary wrote him a note and laid down the cash plus $500 for the pedestals. All that the
note said was, “If this isn’t enough, you know where I live. (signed) Gary Olsen.

While they hooked up the three home sections, that was a real challenge; Stacy and
Ray took some cash and went in search of fuel. There was a single station open and as
they pulled in, a real Army vehicle was pulling out. They pulled to the pump and told the
attendant to ‘filler up’. The attendant reached to fill the pickup and Ray smiled and
shook his head. He pointed to the trailer. The attendant told Stacy to pull around be-
tween the islands so he could fill the trailer from both diesel pumps. When finally the
trailer was full (What is the pump rate on a gas station diesel pump?) after what seemed
like forever, the attendant pulled out a clipboard, wrote in 600 in the quantity column
and asked Ray to put in this vehicle number and sign. While the trailer was filling, the
attendant approached Ray.

“I didn’t know the Army was using Dodge pickups these days,” the man said.

“Wouldn’t know,” Ray said, “We’re Air Force.”

“Oh,” the attendant said and returned to the trailer, which still bore the Air Force mark-
ings from before the Air Force sold it as salvage. They’d camo’d the trailer but left the
numbers showing through. Never argue with a filling station attendant, especially after
he just gave you 600-gallons of diesel. Just fill in a phony number and sign someone
else’s name. Free is good; they would have to ‘buy’ fuel there more often. By the time

399
Stacy and Ray returned to the trailer dealer’s, the others had managed to figure out how
to tow the home sections and had them hooked up. Ron had always told Gary, “Act like
you own the place.” It worked this time.

Day 17…11Dec10…

Ray had remembered that they needed concrete and they had headed for a home im-
provement store. They had filled the pickup with cement, sand and gravel and hoped
they had enough. They’d put in four strips to support the three sections, that’s all the
material they had, and start on the home the next day. If you’ve never seen a mobile
home assembled, you wouldn’t realize what they forgotten to pick up. But, it wasn’t
worth the risk to drive back to Flagstaff for the assembly equipment. So, they had to
muscle the sections together. It was only a few inches, but it felt like 10’ by the time they
were done. Of course it helps to have winches on the vehicles to pull the tires sideways.

Day 20…14Dec10…

With the home finally assembled and the furniture in place, Scott and Susan invited eve-
ryone to a house warming. They had hot canapés (chopped up wieners in barbeque
sauce), hors d’oeuvres (tuna salad on crackers), and cocktails (cold Budweiser or iced
tea) for their guests. How does that go? Ah, a good time was had by all. After the party,
Stacy offered to walk Ray home. They had a pretty good time, too.

Day 21…15Dec10…

“So Ray,” Gary asked, “When’s the wedding?”

“Uh, I didn’t ask her to marry me,” Ray stumbled.

“That’s ok,” Gary said, “I’ll ask Stacy myself.”

“Don’t you think I should ask her first?” Ray stammered.

“What for Ray?” Gary laughed, “She’s already got her mind made up. I’ll tell you what,
you go ask her when the wedding is and let me know, ok?”

“I guess,” Ray replied, feeling really out of character. He walked over to Stacy’s home
and knocked on the door.

“Hi Ray, come in.” Stacy said, “Would you like a cup of coffee or something?”

“Uh Stacy,” Ray stammered, “Gary sent me over here to ask you when the wedding is.”

“The 28th of December,” Stacy said, “The day after my birthday.”

“Am I invited?” Ray asked.

400
“Only if you want to live, I’m a dead shot remember?” Stacy replied. “Want that coffee
now?”

“You wouldn’t happen to have some bourbon would you?” Ray gulped.

Good news spreads fast. The only problem they had was that no one was a JP or a
minister or a judge. Bill offered to perform a Comanche wedding ceremony and they all
agreed it would have to do. I wonder if that’s anything like a Jewish wedding where you
get to stomp the glass.

Day 34…28Dec10…

Their one-hour ceremony followed tradition as nearly as possible. Bill united Stacy and
Ray in a replica of an ancient village. The couple entered the council fire area. “The fire
was and is sacred to The People, and is a living memorial. It has been with The People
from the beginning of time,” Bill said before the ceremony. Stacy wore a white cotton
dress. Ray wore his uniform. The couple was wrapped in blue blankets, which repre-
sented their old ways of weakness, sorrow, failures and spiritual depression. They were
followed by relatives (Ryan, Scott and Susan) to the sacred fire (a bonfire in a charcoal
grill). A holy man (Bill) blessed the union and all those present in an elaborate ceremo-
ny. The couple exchanged baskets, the groom’s basket contained a package of hot
dogs and handkerchief, representing his promise to feed and clothe her. The bride’s
basket was filled with buns and mustard, representing her promise to nurture and sup-
port him. The couple then shed the blue blankets and was enveloped, by relatives
(Ryan, Scott and Susan), in a white blanket representing their new ways of happiness,
fulfillment and peace. Stomp dancers (Gary, Ron and Clarence) performed for the cou-
ple and a prayer of continuance was said to end the ceremony. Or, something like that,
but it was a touching wedding. And, Gary got to kiss the bride (be still my heart).

Day 35…29Dec10…

Gary was pounding on Stacy and Ray’s door. “Come on you guys, the honeymoon’s
over.”

Ray yanked the door opened and laughed, “The honeymoon has only begun Gar-Bear.
You can have her when the honeymoon is over in about 150 years.”

“She’d be worth waiting for, Ray,” Gary admitted, “Look, we need to discuss what we
are going to do for defenses and seeing how you’re a retired Army man, I figured you
could work with Derek, Scott and Ryan and work something out.”

“What do you have for me to work with?” Ray said. “Come in, it’s cold out there. Cof-
fee?”

“Black. Well, in addition to what you’ve seen, we have some Claymores, some AT-4s,

401
night vision equipment, Garand’s, riot guns, some FAL’s, 2 semi loads, or more, of am-
mo, radios, hand grenades, the Interceptor vests with level 4 plates, quite an assort-
ment of 40mm grenades, some of that new ammo, the M993 and M995, .50 cal in
match, API, APIT and Mk 211, suppressors on everything, all the Alice gear we can ev-
er use, Camelback’s, plus some explosives and detonators. You know Ray, just the
usual assortment of stuff most retirees have.”

“Ever since I met you guys, something has been bothering me,” Ray said, “Were you
ever on TV?”

“Larry King Live,” Gary said.

“That explains a lot,” Ray laughed.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 21 – Here We Go Again

“You didn’t happen to catch Geraldo’s appearance in LA, did you?” Ray asked.

“Clarence did, but I had something to do that day,” Gary replied.

“That was quite a shot wasn’t it? Got the SOB from 500 yards,” Ray recalled.

“600,” Gary said.

“Uh, uh, so tell me what other mischief have you boys been up to?” Ray asked.

“Are you a cop or an undercover agent or anything Ray?” Gary asked. “Cause if you
are, and I answer that question, I sure hate what I’d have to do next.”

“Yeah, like you killed Kerry or something,” Ray laughed.

Gary didn’t laugh. Gary didn’t do anything. Gary just stared at Ray with dead eyes.

“But where did you get SA-7 missiles?” Ray sputtered.

“Stingers,” Gary said.

Ray was suddenly very certain that he’d opened his mouth and learned things he never
wanted to know. Gary didn’t have any sort of expression on his face whatsoever. And,
Ray noticed that for such a jovial man, at this very moment Gary’s eyes looked dead.

“I’m sorry I brought it up and I’ll never say anything to anyone Gar-Bear,” Ray said
evenly.

“Don’t you want to know the rest?” Gary asked. “In for a penny, in for a pound (ster-
ling).”

“Only if you want to tell me,” Ray replied softly.

“Well Ray, the three of us have been raising hell ever since 2005,” Gary said. “Killed us
a bunch of the California National Guard and FEMA. We attacked some of those camps
and set the people free. We were behind all of those bridges going down. Then we went
around the country and blew up some more relo camps. That was tough, with that new
design and all. And finally, I sent George W. Bush a personal message after he got out
of office explaining how I felt about him. Finally, we visited Atlanta to see Kerry’s speech
but somebody shot down his plane with two stinger missiles. Whoever did that might
have made a mistake. This Edwards guy, assuming he’s still alive, is hiding out some-
where. We might have done some other stuff, but I forget. I have memory problems, you
know.”

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“You know Gary,” Ray smiled, “That memory problem must be catching, I believe I have
a touch of it myself. And, I must say, I really like your disguises, you guys actually look
and act old.”

Later that morning…

“We looked around at the possibilities of defending this ranch,” Ray said. “It is far too
open to properly defend. We could build some fixed fortifications, but as Patton said,
‘Fixed fortifications are monuments to man’s stupidity’. Those shelters are a good idea,
but you might as well put a flag on the radio antennas or post a sign that says ‘Here we
are’. That cyclone fence accomplishes the same thing.”

“Ray, we can hide the antennas and there is a shutoff valve on the shower drain outside
shelter blast door,” Gary explained. “If push comes to shove, we can hole up in the shel-
ter and flood the entrance.”

“That really doesn’t solve your problem Gary,” Ray observed, “You have the vehicles
and the livestock. Surely anyone who attacked the ranch would drive them off and leave
you on foot.”

“Assuming that anyone found us in the first place,” Gary commented. “You can’t really
see anything from the highway, so if we eliminated any sign of a road coming to the
ranch, people would probably pass us by. And, we could slop some earth tone paint on
the cyclone fence to make it harder to spot.”

“That might just work,” Ray allowed, “Less is more?”

“Of course, we’ll have to go back to Flagstaff for paint and some equipment,” Ron said,
“Unless you intend to be Huck Finn and paint 4 miles of fence with a brush.”

“Let’s make up a list of supplies people and we’ll risk another trip,” Gary suggested.
“Anyone need anything else while we’re going?”

“We could use more diesel fuel,” Ray offered.

“We don’t have another tanker,” Gary said.

“No, but that service station in Flagstaff is supplying the Army and they must be getting
the diesel from somewhere,” Ray countered. “We could hijack a tanker.”

“Anything else?” Gary asked.

“Portable generators for the paint sprayers,” Damon suggested. “And some gas to run
them.”

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“Ron add that to the list,” Gary grinned. “What else?”

“All of our pickups run on gasoline,” Bill commented, “How about gasoline?”

“How about you trade the pickups in for diesels?” Gary suggested. “Drive them to Flag-
staff, pick out new pickups, and leave your old ones.” If we’re going to get lots of diesel,
we’ll need more PRI-D. Add that to the list Ron.”

“There’s a Big Five in Flagstaff, we ought to browse,” Clarence suggested.

“Maybe we should just move to Flagstaff,” Gary joked. “Ok. Tomorrow morning, we’ll
exchange the pickups, borrow a diesel tanker, paint, generators and some sporting
goods.”

“Why don’t we go today?” Ray asked.

“Suits me,” Gary replied. “Ron and Clarence, dig out those Marshal’s badges and ID;
this soldier bit wasn’t my best idea.”

“You have some fake ID’s?” Ray asked.

“Hell no,” Gary laughed. “They’re real. They’d even pass a computer check if there were
any computer’s running. But, if you’d prefer Ray, we can be Secret Service or FBI.”

“I’m sorry I asked,” Ray muttered.

About an hour later, the 4 pickups, 2 Hummers and 3 5-ton trucks left for Flagstaff. The
first stop was a paint store where they loaded up on 5-gallon pails of paint and Wagner
sprayers. The next stop was the Big Five store where they impounded all of the GPS
receivers and archery equipment (well, they had 4 Indian families). Next, they ‘traded in’
the pickups at the Dodge dealer’s. Home Depot was the source for generators, building
supplies, Wagner sprayers that had their own motors and gas cans. Then they stopped
by the Service station.

“I can fill your gas cans,” the attendant said, “But we’re out of diesel.”

“Darn,” Gary said, “Will you be getting in more?”

“Well, there’s a delivery tanker due in from Tucson in about two hours,” the attendant
replied, “But that fuel is earmarked for the Army.”

“Tucson?” Gary said, “They must be coming up on I-17, huh?”

“Yeah, same as always,” the attendant said.

405
“I guess we’ll just have to settle for the gas then,” Gary responded dejectedly. “Fill the
cans, please.”

Two hours probably meant that the truck was just passing through Phoenix, or what was
left of it. There was a rest stop about 15 miles south of Flagstaff, too. When the at-
tendant finished, Gary paid him the $1,000 for the 200 gallons of gas and they headed
south on I-17. At the rest stop, they pulled the trucks across the median and blocked the
road. A Hummer was parked on each shoulder. Roughly an hour later, two Chevron de-
livery trucks appeared northbound. The drivers stopped their vehicles just short of the
roadblock. Clarence, Gary and Ron walked over to the first truck, holding their USMS ID
high.

“US Marshals, Mister,” Gary said, “Is this the fuel shipment for Flagstaff?”

The armed guard in the passenger’s seat visibly relaxed.

“Yes, why are you stopping us?” the driver asked.

“We had a report that someone planted bombs on these two trucks,” Gary explained.
“The Army here,” he said pointing to the Hummer’s, “Sent us down to stop you and dis-
arm the bombs. This might be tricky, so you guys had better hike down the road a ways
until we can get them disarmed.”

“Are you really Marshals?” the driver prudently asked.

“Look at the Badge and ID yourself,” Gary said passing his credentials to the driver. As
you might imagine, the driver had never seen any US Marshal badges or ID’s in his life.
He asked to see Ron’s and then Clarence’s. They were all the same and embossed.

“We’d better get the hell out of here Jim,” he said to the guard. The two drivers and the
two guards took off down the road, double time.

“Derek, stop by the auto parts stores and get all the PRI-D you can find,” Gary directed.
“Did we forget anything?”

Day 36…30Dec10…

It had been after dark by the time they’d returned to the ranch. Nevertheless, they took
time to put camo netting over the two tankers. The following morning, the 30th, Damon
put those Wagner sprayers to good use and by lunchtime, the tankers just looked like
part of the scenery. The pickups were nice too. They were identical to the ones every-
one else had. Ray wasn’t about to trade in his F-100; it had character plus about
300,000 miles on the odometer. While the cousins did their best to eliminate any sign of
the small dirt road leading from the highway, all of the paint sprayers were put to use.
They used a mixture of colors, sage, tan, brown and green, one color to a sprayer,
working from the gate to the north and south. By sundown, they had made it about ¼

406
mile in each direction. The cousins couldn’t really hide the road, but they eliminated the
tire tracks and transplanted a few bushes. They made it about ½ way to the fence from
the road.

Day 37…31Dec10…

The folks started at dawn. By early afternoon, the cousins had reached the fence and
the entire east side of the fence was painted. The fence blended in well and except for
the shadow it cast, wasn’t particularly noticeable. Since it was New Year’s Eve, they
knocked off early. There still hadn’t been a word from the NCA, either. Speculation at
the ranch and on the Ham radio bands was that Edwards had been killed in the attack.
Some of the Hams pointed out that the attack must have taken out every government
official in the US; otherwise someone would have come forward. Gary figured that Ed-
wards was alive and just hiding. He had written that Dubya had hidden out for 5 years in
one of his stories.

The folks 40 and up were going to have a party in the shelter that night and play some
‘50’s & ‘60’s music. The younger people had cleaned up a space in the garage for their
party that featured what they claimed was music. Gary had dug around in the supplies
and pulled out a case of Distiller’s Masterpiece Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
from the Jim Beam Distillery. This was the really good stuff. Before the party, Gary gave
each of the cousins, Ray and Scott a bottle of the bourbon to put up for later. Ron. Clar-
ence and he set out an assortment of liquors, mixes, beverages and snacks for the par-
ty. They earned a break and though there wasn’t a lot to celebrate, it would be good to
unwind a little.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 22 – The Morning After

01Jan11…

Ron, Clarence and Gary had the responsibility of cleaning up after the party. The liquor
had barely been touched and everyone had been more in the mood to listen to the mu-
sic than dance. It took all of 10 minutes to pick up and Gary went into the radio shack
and turned on his radios. There wasn’t much new chatter, although from the sounds of
it, the attack by the Chinese hadn’t been as devastating as he had first imagined. Some
of the missiles had missed their intended targets or failed to detonate entirely. Others
had detonated at a high altitude and their greatest damage had been the EMP they
caused. But, from the sounds of it a goodly number of the warheads were right on target
and had exploded as intended.

Back when they’d been hiding out at the Underground City, they had ended up with a lot
of the camo netting. Clarence had suggested the night before that they use the netting
on the buildings and homes and park the Airstreams inside. Bill, Jonas, Robert and
James were hard at work on the netting when the three of them emerged from the shel-
ter. Two crews of young people were painting fence like crazy, almost making a game
out of it. There didn’t seem to be much for the three of them to do, so they went to the
barn, saddled their horses and rode up to the front gate. There was a nip in the air, but it
was tolerable. From the highway, the road into the property wasn’t really noticeable un-
less you knew what you were looking for. They angled to the north to a rise and viewed
the ranch. The fence was slowly being blended into the background and it looked like 2
of the homes had disappeared.

“That was a good idea Clarence,” Ron said cheerfully.

“Yeah Ron,” Clarence bubbled, “Worked better than I thought it would.”

“I thought that Damon did a poor job on those trailers,” Gary commented, “But I can’t
see them from here.”

Damon must have agreed, because he’d put them in the garage. They rode back to the
barn, rubbed down the horses and went for a late lunch. While they were eating Ray
came by and wanted to know if they had any more camo netting. When they’d told him
no, he said he’d take care of it and left. They heard the 5-ton trucks start up a little later
but didn’t give it much thought. When they came out of Ron’s after lunch, James told
them that Damon, Derek, Ray, Stacy, Ryan and Scott had gone to Flagstaff for sup-
plies. Four homes were now completely draped. Gary found the missing Chevron trucks
in the garage and realized why he hadn’t seen them from the rise. He joined Ron and
Clarence in the shelter where they were having dessert, e.g. popcorn and cokes and
watching a movie.

“Kind of stupid for them to go to Flagstaff in the middle of the afternoon on New Year’s
Day,” Gary observed.

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“Well, the stores won’t be crowded,” Ron laughed.

“Yeah Gary,” Clarence smiled, “Lighten up. They’ll be ok.”

“What are you watching?” Gary asked.

“Alien vs. Predator,” Ron replied.

“Oh, that ought to be good,” Gary smirked, “I’ll be in the radio shack.”

In the aftermath of Kerry’s death and Edward’s ascension to the Presidency, Edwards
had appointed Senator Bill Nelson, from Florida, to be Vice-President under the 25th
Amendment. Nelson, who had first been elected to the Senate in 2000, was a former
Astronaut. At Mt. Weather, Nelson patiently waited for Edwards to act. After the Chair-
man of the Joint Chiefs had resigned, Nelson did everything in his power to get Ed-
wards to act. He failed. Section 4 of the 25th Amendment states, in part, “Whenever the
Vice president and a majority of either the principal officers of the executive depart-
ments or of such other body as Congress may by law provide, transmit to the president
pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives their writ-
ten declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his
office, the Vice President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office
as Acting President.”

Remember the movie Air Force One starring Harrison Ford and Glenn Close? That was
the document that they were trying to get her to sign in the movie. The surviving Cabinet
members and the Vice President signed the declaration and gave copies to the presi-
dent pro tempore and the Speaker. Nelson was now the Acting President, effective at
noon 01Jan11. If you’ve ever seen In Harm’s Way, you may remember the speech Nim-
itz gave that ended with the statement, ...indecision is a virus that can run through an
army and destroy its will to win. Or even to survive. That statement certainly applied in
this situation. Nimitz (Henry Fonda) had been referring to General George B. McClellan
in the film and had been explaining to Admiral Rockwell Torrey (John Wayne) that Lin-
coln’s solution to McClellan had been to appoint Grant. Like the John Wayne character,
Nelson was both an organizer and decisive. He consulted with the remaining members
of the Joint Chiefs and scheduled a broadcast on NPR for 9pm EST from Mt. Weather.
Mt. Weather had been on the Ham bands most of the day announcing the forthcoming
radio broadcast.

Gary caught the news on one of the Ham bands and looked for his list of Arizona radio
stations. KNAU-FM: 88.7, Flagstaff and KPUB-FM: 91.7 were the same station. KJZZ-
FM: 89.5, was from the Phoenix area, and KNAG-FM: 90.3, was from Grand Canyon.
He put on KNAG and at 7pm MST, Nelson addressed the nation for the first time.

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My Fellow Americans,

“My name is Bill Nelson and I am the Vice President. As most of you know, I was ap-
pointed by President Edwards to be the Vice President after the untimely death of Pres-
ident Kerry. President Edwards was determined to be unable to discharge his duties
under the 25th Amendment and I have assumed the role of Acting President until Presi-
dent Edwards is able to resume his duties. This decision did not come lightly and it was
only after the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff resigned that this action was consid-
ered.

On Thanksgiving Day, our nation was struck by the Chinese in a pre-emptive nuclear
strike. President Edwards responded in kind and dispatched approximately ½ of our
missiles in retaliation against China. He also struck the North Korean Capital,
P’yongyang. We have only recently been able to reestablish contact with our satellites,
but over flights by SR-71 aircraft have shown that nearly ½ of the Chinese population
and most of its armed forces survived our attack.

The United States was more fortunate than first believed, but the death toll is now esti-
mated to exceed 50 million. Initial reports put our military losses at 66 percent of our
Army and all of our in port naval vessels. However, more recent reports reveal that we
lost ⅓ of our Army and ½ of the in port naval fleet. President Edwards recalled all of our
other naval vessels to the US. Consequently, we can field 10 Divisions of Army and ap-
proximately ¾ of our naval forces.

Five Divisions of the US Army will be tasked in the effort to aid our citizens. The remain-
ing 5 Divisions and the US Marine Corps will be dispatched to our west coast to repel
any possible invasion. Any members of the Armed Forces who were on leave and are
able to return to duty are urged to do so. Effective immediately all members of the Na-
tional Guard Units of all states are federalized to assist in the helping the citizens of the
US who were affected by strikes on our cities; however, since individual circumstances
may vary, individuals on leave and members of the National Guards who are unable to
report will not be penalized.

Effective immediately I am declaring martial law for the duration of this emergency and
a dusk to dawn curfew is hereby imposed. However, since individual circumstances
may vary, travel will be permitted in extreme situations. Military commanders will be in-
structed to issue travel permits for travel during the curfew hours. The presumption will
be that the travel is necessary, however, abuse of the privilege will be dealt with by
denying further travel during curfew hours.

I realize that many American citizens believe in the Right to Keep and Bear Arms. The
strength of those convictions were clearly shown when a Democratic Congress was
pressured into repealing all of the gun laws back to and including the Gun Control Act of
1968. I disagree, but I will not enter into a debate concerning this issue, and under the
present circumstances neither will I dispute the wisdom of the American people. There-
fore, until further notice, all federal gun law are hereby suspended. I recommend the

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states follow my lead. The United States may end up needing the American public to
directly support our Armed Forces if China does indeed invade this country. However,
anyone using a firearm in a criminal act will be dealt with on the harshest possible
terms. Permit me to explain. Anyone using a firearm in the commission of a felony is to
be shot on sight. Anyone using a firearm in the commission of a misdemeanor will be
arrested and charged with felonious possession of a firearm.

As some of you may recall, when General Clark seized power, he forced former Presi-
dent George Bush to issue various restrictions including restricting travel to a 20-mile
radius from your home, granting full police powers to FEMA, monitoring Internet and
telephone communications and by suspending Posse Comitatus and the Writ of Habeas
Corpus. He also implemented food rationing. None of those measures will be taken.
However, if you have extra food, I urge you to share it with your friends and neighbors
who may be less fortunate than yourself.

FEMA is the Federal Emergency Management Agency, not the Gestapo. They will fol-
low their mandate precisely and lend assistance to the American public where needed. I
will ask the American Red Cross to open and manage voluntary assistance centers for
people requiring assistance. I will ask Congress to fund FEMA and those centers with-
out restriction on any rights of the individuals who seek help from FEMA or chose to use
those camps.

It is my belief that many of the events of 2005 and thereafter were the work of a small
group of individuals. I do not know their identities nor do I wish to know who they are. I
will say this, ‘Gentlemen, stop your engines’. American needs your help, not a further
demonstration of your political views. Whoever you are, wherever you are, don’t blow up
any more power lines or bridges. You do yourselves and your country a disservice if you
do so.

God Bless America and God Bless the American People.

Thank you and goodnight.

“This guy is a Democrat?” Gary asked. “Who would have thunk?”

“Sounds to me like he is an American first and a Democrat second,” Ron opined. “If he’s
for real, I could vote for a guy like that.”

“I’m almost willing to say that if he is for real, I’d eat my hat,” Gary responded, “But I
think I’d better keep my mouth shut this time.”

“But Gary,” Clarence protested, “He’s a politician.”

“You know what Clarence?” Gary said, “That man didn’t sound like any politician I’ve
ever heard. We’d better just lay back and continue our project.”

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The door to the shelter was open, and a while later, the three men heard the rumble of
the returning trucks. A short time after that, Damon, Derek, Ray, Stacy, Ryan and Scott
presented themselves to the three old geezers.

“Where did you people go?” Gary asked.

“Flagstaff, Dad,” Derek explained, “We needed more camo netting and some pipes to
support the netting.”

“Any trouble?” Gary asked.

“No,” Ray replied, “Took what we needed, left money for it and came back here. Did you
hear the speech on the radio?”

“We heard it,” Ron said, “But do you believe it?”

“I don’t know what to believe, Ron,” Ray admitted, “But it did sound to me like he was
sending a personal message to some people I happen to know. I think if I were them, I’d
take his advice.”

Ron gave Gar-Bear a rather strange look. Gary just shrugged his shoulders. They let
the matter drop at that, Ron not wanting to reveal their previous activities and Gary not
willing to reveal what he had told Ray. It also occurred to Gary that he hadn’t mentioned
taking down the power grid to Ray, but Ray probably put 2 and 2 together.

02Jan11 through 09Jan11…

It took the people at the ranch a full week to install the netting, paint the fences and
erase any sign of their existence. They had one problem that they didn’t know how to
deal with. Situated, as it was, the camo’d barn blocked the view of the livestock. They
had noticed from the rise that the animals seemed to vanish and then appear out of thin
air when they came out from behind the barn. You couldn’t really see the fence, it had
been painted too, but that barn was a dead giveaway. They decided that their only op-
tion was to go back to Flagstaff and buy some steel posts and barbed wire and fence in
an area for the livestock well away from the barn.

Damon, Derek, Ray, Stacy, Ryan and Scott plus the three old men would make the trip.
They armed themselves as befit the situation, with sniper rifles and MP5/10SD6s plus
their favorite handguns. They would find out if the President was telling the truth or not,
right now. When they arrived in Flagstaff, the cop motioned them right through the stop.
They went to an open farm supply store and bought all the posts and wire they could
haul and extra post drivers. People were out and about in Flagstaff, almost like before
Thanksgiving. They went to every store where they’d ‘borrowed’ things and offered to
pay for whatever they’d taken. The storeowners or managers, perhaps in shock, ac-
cepted the payments gratefully and told them to be sure and come back; all except one.
Gary explained it to him.

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“Look butthead, I didn’t have to come in here and offer to pay for what we took,” Gary
explained, “I did and I’m willing to pay for exactly what we took and nothing else. The
way I see it you can take my money or not, frankly, I don’t give a crap. You never know,
we might just be the guys that the President was talking about. You know, the guys re-
sponsible for all that crap in 2005 and after. Maybe we need to blow your store up.”

Needless to say, the man took the money and never said a word to anyone else about
the event. What the hell, he intended to file an insurance claim for everything that was
taken anyway.

413
 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 23 – The Invisible Ranch

10Jan11 through 24Jan11…

They had no idea how large of an area they could fence in with the wire and fence posts
they purchased. They divided the wire and posts in 4 piles of each and put in one row of
posts. They got about ¼-mile before the posts ran out. They strung the wire and had
more wire than posts. They talked it over and decided that the area was just too small
and would make the livestock tend to bunch up. So, they got Damon and Derek and 2 of
David’s boys to take down the two strands of barbed wire around the section and to use
the Ford tractor and loader to pull the steel posts from the fence around the original
fenced section. Everyone who could work on the project was involved, but it took 15
days of very hard work and long days to fence in the southwest section and paint the
fencing. The reward for their efforts was that the livestock didn’t disappear anymore;
that plus a lot of blisters and aching muscles.

The livestock, it should be noted, consisted of the horses and some cattle. There were
no chickens or pigs, not this go around. Just having the horses and cattle was enough
of a chore. They really had trouble hiding the radio antennas until someone got the
bright idea to put up some telephone poles and string some camo netting. They still had
netting available, but didn’t have any telephone poles. On the other hand, they did have
a chainsaw and they weren’t that far from a stand of pine trees. I’m sure that Forrest
Gump’s Mama had a saying to cover this situation, but it doesn’t occur to me. Anyway,
they harvested some pines, removed the branches and dropped them into holes that
they started with the posthole augur and deepened by hand. With the netting up, you
couldn’t see the antennas and the antennas didn’t block the view of the livestock. It
looked like they were set. NPR carried a Saturday morning address by Acting President
Nelson and the military was doing its best to help the population.

Ryan wanted to report back to the Army to assist in protecting the country or whatever
they would want him to do. This led to some long discussion and almost an argument or
two, but in the end, Ray and Stacy persuaded Ryan that he would be serving his coun-
try just as much by staying at the ranch and aiding in the defense of the residents. Ryan
was still debating the issue when near the first part of February, a group of stragglers
showed up at the ranch. These were families and they weren’t looking for trouble. But,
they barely had anything to their names. They had been up at the Grand Canyon when
the attack came and had stayed on until the food ran out at the motel. They had walked
from the GC to the turn in road and had stopped for the night to rest and nibble at their
meager rations.

As had become their habit, the three old geezers rode up to the highway each day, as
much to occupy their time as anything else. They saw the group sitting around a small
campfire dividing up the last of their food, a box of soda crackers. They didn’t notice any
weapons of any sort, either.

“Howdy folks,” Gary said, “What brings you out in the middle of nowhere in this kind of

414
weather?”

“We didn’t mean to trespass mister,” one of the men said, “We couldn’t go any further
last night and stopped to rest and eat. We’ll be on our way.”

“How do you happen to be here?” Ron asked kindly.

“We were up at the motel in Grand Canyon for Thanksgiving and just stayed after the
attack,” the man said. “But they ran out of food so we took what they’d give us and
started to hike down to Williams. They ran us out of that small burg up the road a ways
with guns. If you could spare a little food, we can pay a little for it.”

Gary looked at Ron and Clarence who just nodded. He pulled a radio out of his saddle-
bag and radioed back to the ranch, telling them to bring two pickups and hurry.

“Well folks, the President said to help friends and neighbors who were less fortunate, so
I expect we can get you warmed up and fed and get you to Williams later on if that’s
where you want to go,” Gary remarked. “How come you’re on foot?”

“Well, there was a bus tour at the motel and one night some of those folks hotwired our
cars and stole them,” the man explained.

“My name is Gary Olsen, the ugly one here is Ron Green and that handsome black fel-
low is Clarence Rawlings,” Gary introduced them. “This is our ranch.”

“My name is Jim Roland and my wife is Sammy and the kids are Jim, Jr. and Ryan.
That guy there is Samuel Johnson and his wife is Mary. Their two girls are named Mary
and Salina. The other fellow is Harry Olsen and his wife is Janet. Their kids are Charles
and Jennie.”

“Nice to meet you folks, how would some hot food and a hot bath sound right about
now?” Gary asked.

“About like we’d died and gone to Heaven,” Jim said.

About that time Ray and Scott pulled up in two of the pickups.

“You folks have any luggage?” Gary asked.

“Left it at the motel with the bellman,” Jim answered, “We didn’t figure we had the
strength to haul it the 22 miles to Williams.”

“He give you any kind of claim checks or anything?’ Gary asked.

“Yes,” Jim said, “Why?”

415
“We’ll send someone up to Grand Canyon for your luggage,” Gary replied. “Hop into the
pickup folks and welcome to the Ranch.”

They men drove the pickups slowly to allow the horses to keep up. When they passed
through the cyclone fence gate, the newcomers were surprised to see the camouflaged
fence. They were even more surprised when they got to the actual ranch area.

“Is everything around here camouflaged?” Jim asked.

“We try to keep a low profile.” Gary remarked. “We’ll put you up in our shelter for tonight
and figure out where to go after you’ve cleaned up and had something to eat.”

They dismounted the families and led them to the bomb shelter. Since even the en-
trance to the shelter was painted, they were very close to the shelter before they real-
ized where they were going. They were led down the stairs and about died of surprise.

“Do you live in this shelter?” Jim asked.

“Only when the situation warrants,” Ron replied.

Gary picked up a phone and called his house. He asked Sharon to get Linda and Lucy
and come to prepare a hot meal for their guests. Meanwhile he assigned each couple to
a bedroom and pointed out the dormitory where the children could sleep. Clarence put
on two pots of coffee to brew and Sharon, Linda and Lucy arrived to prepare a meal.
The men got the folks some towels, soap and washcloths and showed them where a
rack of used clothing was in the main storage shelter. They picked out clean clothes and
the adults let the kids use the bathrooms first. When the kids were cleaned and
dressed, the adults cleaned up themselves. Each of the bathrooms had a supply of ra-
zors, shaving cream and other necessities. The women threw together something quick
like chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy and a vegetable. The set out a gal-
lon carton of milk and put a pot of coffee on a warmer. They served the children and lat-
er the adults when they put in an appearance.

“Are there many other people up at Grand Canyon?” Gary asked.

“I don’t know,” Jim said, “The employees seemed to just disappear and I think we were
the last three families, but I can’t be sure.”

Gary called Ray and asked him to come to the shelter.

“Ray, these folks walked here from the Grand Canyon,” Gary explained. “How about
you take the 3 5-tons and two Hummers and check it out. They will give you the claim
checks for their luggage. Maybe Scott, Damon, Derek, Ryan, Stacy and the 4 cousins
should go along and go armed; we don’t want any trouble. If there are any more motel
guests up there, bring them back, would you?”

416
Ray collected the claim checks, called the others on the phone and told them to come to
the shelter and arm up. When they showed up, Ray unlocked the armory. They turned
out a few minutes later wearing web gear, handguns and with a sniper rifle slung on one
shoulder and an MP5 slung around their necks. Jim’s eyes got as big as saucers.

“Would you mind if I asked what kind of a ranch this is?” he asked.

“Jim,” Gary said, “I guess you’d call it a retirement ranch for survivalists. Why, do the
guns bother you?”

“Not really Gary,” Jim said, “But those people look like they’re on their way to World War
III. We’re all veterans, so we’re familiar with guns.”

“Ever see any action?” Gary asked.

“We were all grunts in Desert Storm,” Jim replied.

“Really?” Gary asked. “Where are you folks from?”

“Los Angeles,” Jim replied quietly, “Or, at least we used to be. Based on news reports,
our homes are all gone.”

“California natives?” Gary asked.

“Nah, we were all raised in Waterloo, Iowa,” Jim said

“Home of the Sullivan brothers,” Gary commented casually.

“You know Iowa?” Jim asked.

“You know where Charles City is?” Gary asked back.

“Yeah. Are you from Charles City?” Jim asked, his eyes once again large.

“Graduated from high school there in 1961,” Gary said, “And my wife is from Des
Moines and Ottumwa.”

“My two boys were born and raised in Iowa, too,” Gary added.

“Ron has one daughter who lived in Austin.” Gary continued.

“What did you do in California,” Gary asked.

“Building trades,” Jim replied. “You have one carpenter, one plumber and one electri-
cian.”

417
“No medics, huh?” Gary asked.

“Well Sammy is a surgical nurse and Mary is a LPN,” Jim replied. “Plus Janet is a par-
amedic. Why?”

“You wouldn’t consider retiring to Arizona would you?” Gary asked.

“Never gave it much thought, Gary,” Jim admitted.

“Well now, there would be a free home, furnishings and $750 a week, tax free wages, in
it for each family,” Gary said, “And the corporation buys all of the food and utilities are
free. Might even be able to come up with three diesel pickup as a signing bonus.”

“We can talk it over, Gary, but I won’t promise anything,” Jim said.

“I’m not one who says please very often Jim, but please do that,” Gary replied.

Neither was Gary one who actually prayed much, but on that particular night, he talked
out loud to God. “You know Lord, I’m not one to pray very much, and this might be self-
ish. But Lord, we have this young man among us with mixed feelings about whether to
stay and help us or go and help the country. I wish he would stay and help out Lord, but
I don’t know if that is the right thing or I’m just being selfish. You probably do know Lord
so whatever he should do; please help him to make a decision, one way or the other.

“And, another thing Lord, three families happened to come by today and we did what
any decent person would do and gave them some hot food and a place to sleep. I also
offered jobs Lord and homes and such, but you know all that don’t you? Maybe you
brought them to our door, I don’t know. I do know that they have some skills this little
community could sure use. Anyway Lord, maybe I offered enough and maybe I didn’t, I
don’t know. But we could sure use their help Lord I do know that. Anyway, if you might
happen to agree and if you could see your way clear to helping those folks to decide, I’d
be grateful. You know about these things better that I do Lord so whatever you have
them decide is the way it’s supposed to be, I suppose. Anyway Lord, I didn’t want you
up there thinking that I never gave you any thought. So thanks for listening and thanks
for your time. Amen.”

25Jan11…

It was the strangest thing, but that morning, Ryan announced that he had decided to
stay with them there at the ranch. He didn’t know why, maybe it was just because he’d
finally met someone else named Ryan, but he was staying. And Jim said the three fami-
lies had talked it over and had decided to take Gary up on the offer for the time being at
least. They didn’t have homes to go back to and the idea of having a new home and
furnishings did appeal to them. And $750 a week, even tax free, was a little less than
they were accustomed to but with the food tossed in and no utilities to pay and transpor-
tation being part of the deal, it just seemed to them to be the right thing to do. Besides,

418
this seemed like a pretty decent bunch of folks of to them, taking them in and all and
asking nothing in return except to consider staying on and lending a hand. They were
willing to stay.

419
 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 24 – Promises to Keep

Well sir, he’d gone and opened his mouth and now he had to keep his word. Gary, Ron
and Clarence got Ray and Scott and Ryan to take them down to Flagstaff to the mobile
home dealer who was back open for business. Gary told the dealer that they sure did
need 4 new homes up there at the ranch in the worst way. And, by the way, were he
and the dealer square on the triplewide they’d helped themselves to during the emer-
gency? The dealer told him they were close enough, he supposed and he’d make any
adjustments in the prices of the new homes.

He could only provide them with 4 new doublewides, but he could install them. This was
going to need to be a cash transaction due to the times, but if Gary had the cash, they
had a deal at $70 thousand per home installed. Well sir, Gary counted out $300 thou-
sand on the spot and told him that they need basements for the homes and had one
home at the ranch, that triple wide they’d taken, that also needed a basement. The triple
wide needed to be disassembled, moved to the new basement and reassembled, by the
way. It was a bit of an inconvenience for Scott and Susan, but getting a basement was
worth the inconvenience. And Ryan had his own home.

It also cleaned out the dealer in Flagstaff. He only had the 4 display doublewides on
hand. There was no telling when he would be able to get more homes from the manu-
facturers. He towed the homes to the ranch. If someone hadn’t been waiting by the
highway, his men would have missed the turnoff. And when they got back to Flagstaff
they told him that unless you knew where the homes already there were located, you
could easily miss them or drive right into one. The dealer had to drive up to the ranch
and see this for himself. He must have drove past the turnoff 3 times before he noticed
the truck tracks. And found the turn-in. He didn’t see the cyclone fence until he was
nearly on top of it and all he could see down at the ranch area was the four homes wait-
ing to be assembled. The folks there at the ranch had staked out where they wanted the
new basements and when he left to go back to Flagstaff, he asked Gary to be sure and
have someone at the road the next morning for the construction crews.

Although Ryan had agreed to stay, the boy had a burr under his saddle. Ryan, it seems,
had a girlfriend. Her name was Jennifer and she was originally from Jackson too. Jen-
nifer and he had gone to college together and she had continued to Medical school. She
had graduated, completed her internship and because she had started med school dur-
ing her 4th year of college, had completed her residency. The last Ryan had heard from
her just before he gone on leave, she was working with another doctor on a reservation
over in western New Mexico. Jennifer was beautiful and bright and had completed an
11 year program in just 9 years. They were engaged to be married when Ryan finished
Ranger’s school. Ryan explained his problem to Ray and Ray took it to the three gee-
zers.

“Well, I guess we’re going to go after Ryan’s fiancée,” Ron said.

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“Ray, that old Ford of yours might be a keepsake, but you’re going to need some decent
wheels to make the trip to New Mexico,” Gary suggested. “We’ll send two Hummers for
escort and Ryan and you can take one or two of the Dodges to haul her things back.”

“According to Ryan, she doesn’t have much, so one pickup ought to be enough,” Ray
replied.

“Ok, then just take one, but you’d better take extra fuel for the Hummer’s,” Gary said,
“Even with the auxiliary tanks, they have limited range. Fill up all of the vehicles from the
trailer and see how much fuel that leaves you. A couple of hundred gallons ought to be
more than plenty. And, if you can find a judge or preacher, you’d better get them proper-
ly married. Stacy will want to go along I assume, so you can make it a double ceremo-
ny. The Comanche wedding was nice, but you need the papers.”

Scott and Susan, Ray, Stacy and Ryan plus the cousins left the next morning for New
Mexico. The geezers got the contractor to take advantage of their absence and they got
the basements completed for Ryan’s home and Scott and Susan’s home first. The deal-
er had one crew assembling Ryan’s house and another disassembling Scott’s. A week
later, both homes were up and two of the other three were nearly complete. It was nice
to have a real plumber, carpenter and electrician to properly hook the new homes into
the utilities. And it was all about right on time too. The folks showed up back at the
ranch. Ray and Stacy had made it legal, just in case, and Ryan was pleased to intro-
duce the folks to his new bride, Jennifer.

Since Ryan and Jennifer needed furniture, as did, Jim, Sam, Harry and their families, it
was the proper time to make a trip back to Flagstaff. First stop was the Dodge dealer
where the three newcomers picked out pickups to suit them, diesels of course. The
three old geezers insisted that Ray and Ryan do the same. They went back to the furni-
ture store they favored and let everyone pick out new furniture. They loaded the furni-
ture on to the 3 5-ton trucks and 5 pickups. No one seemed to give their submachine
guns a second glace. Of course, you have to remember this was Arizona, not New
York.

The good Lord sure must have listened to that prayer of Gary’s. Not only did they have
2 nurses and a paramedic, they had a doctor. Jennifer was concerned about leaving the
tribes she had been helping in New Mexico, but the old men pointed out that there were
several reservations in the area that would probably welcome her visits. She perked
right up at that and Gar-Bear said he would do what he could to help her with drugs and
supplies.

14Feb11…

Gary could not get past St. Valentine’s Day without dwelling on what happened to Gen-
eral Clark. He just plain got angry every time he thought about what Marshall Thomas
had confirmed. Even a traitor deserved better than what Clark had gotten. There was a
big difference between a firing squad and a bullet to the back of the head, at least to his

421
way of thinking. Jennifer had made up a list of drugs and supplies she wanted and Gary
wanted to visit a gun store in Flagstaff to scratch an itch. So, the three men rode to town
with the kids and they ordered the supplies. Then, they stopped by the gun store. Gary
had it in mind that it sure would be handy to have a little short-barreled shotgun to haul
around with them when they went riding. He was looking for Remington model 11-87
shotguns, but not the 14” models, rather the 12” model with pistol grips. He got what he
wanted, one of each of them. He still had a lot of the 2¾” 12-pellet 00 Buckshot.

As it was, the guys sort of looked like a mobile armory when they went riding. They
wore their Vaqueros on their sides, had the Winchester in a scabbard and a MP5 hang-
ing from the saddle horn. Where were they going to carry a shotgun, even a little short
shotgun with as 12” barrel? In a canvas bag with a loop to hang over the saddle horn, it
turned out. Jim, Sam, Harry were accustomed to the M16’s from their days in the ser-
vice but the general rule was that each family needed one MBR. So, they tagged an
M1A, an M16, an MP5 and wore a 10mm pistol to honor the policy to be armed at all
times.

America’s allies were raising hell in the UN, but their protests were falling on deaf ears.
Things had changed over the years and America really had only one major ally, the
United Kingdom. Ever since the war with Iraq, the US and France and Germany had
been at odds and Russia only liked the US when they needed something. At the mo-
ment the US had nothing to offer anyone. While the US Navy was still the mightiest sea
power in the world, all those ships sitting in American ports did little to influence events
around the world. The only Naval vessels at sea were five boomers and a few attack
submarines.

Acting President Nelson was going out of his way to keep his word, up to a point. Ed-
wards was demanding that he was ‘ready to govern’ but the cabinet liked what they had
in Nelson and were afraid that if Edwards were returned to power, everything being
done to rebuild America would fizzle to a stop. While not everyone agreed with the Flo-
ridian’s approach on gun control, they all had to admit that crime was at an all-time low.
Rumor had it that people who had taken things during the emergency were even return-
ing to the very stores they had looted and paid for the merchandize they had taken. But,
that was probably just a rumor. Anyway, it wasn’t strictly up to Nelson to decide, but the
Congress and they were nowhere near the ⅔s majority required to return Edwards to
power. It was akin to a mental hospital. The doctors, not the patients, decide when re-
lease is appropriate.

01Mar11…

To avoid creating a clear path to the ranch on account of Jennifer’s coming and goings
to the reservations, the men decided that Ryan would drive her cross-country for a sub-
stantial distance before entering the highway. Ryan varied his route, almost never ap-
proaching the road from the same point twice. There were lots of folks on the reserva-

422
tion who needed Jennifer’s help, especially with electricity out and the cold weather.
One of the first things she did was to vaccinate everyone to make sure they didn’t pick
up a deadly illness for drinking tainted water. Then, there were the usual assortment of
aches and pains and colds and flu, with an occasional broken bone. Everyone on the
ranch was especially careful. They seemed unaccustomed to having all of that medical
talent available and did everything with forethought and caution.

The vessels the Chinese had leased had finally accumulated to the point where they
could begin to load their forces for the invasion of the United States. They planned to
sail north to the Bering Sea and southward to the US. They did not have much of a Na-
vy, but had in fact concentrated on building a large fleet of submarines. They had
bought and built, under license, a large fleet of the Paltus, or Kilo export class subma-
rines. Conventionally powered, the submarines had the advantage of stealth when op-
erating on the electric motors. And, they planned to hover close to the larger ships when
they needed to surface and recharge their batteries. The equipment was being loaded
and when completed, the People’s Liberation Army would board and come to America.
Their intelligence showed that the Americans were primarily concentrated along the Cal-
ifornia coast. The American intelligence showed the ships being loaded. Concerned that
the Chinese had not expended their full load of nuclear weapons, Acting President Nel-
son opted out of a nuclear attack and instead sent the US attack submarines racing to-
wards China. They stated object was to disable or destroy as many of the enemy ves-
sels as possible.

02Mar11…9pm EST…

My Fellow Americans,

I come to you tonight with a message of the gravest importance. Our intelligence assets
have disclosed that the People’s Republic of China is indeed intent on invading this
country. Even as I speak, the Chinese are loading their vessels with equipment and ma-
tériel to wage a war against this great nation. The moment we feared appears to be at
hand.

Inasmuch as the PRC still may have weapons of mass destruction, I have opted to
avoid their use. I have dispatched our naval forces to halt this invasion, if possible. In
the unlikely event that the PRC forces slip past our forces, the United States military will
move to repel the invasion. To this end, I am dispatching 3 Divisions of the 5 Divisions
currently assisting in the cleanup to the west coast. In the event that it becomes neces-
sary, the 2 remaining Divisions and the National Guard will also be moved to the west
coast.

President Edwards remains, in the opinion of the Congress, unable to resume office at
this time. I shall therefore do my utmost to lead this nation in its hour of need. Many of
you have taken advantage of the temporary removal of restrictions on firearms and
have armed yourselves. This may account for the sharp reduction in crime the country
is experiencing. However, with privilege comes responsibility. It may become necessary

423
for many of you to join in with our military forces in repelling the Chinese should it come
to that.

Effective immediately, announcements will be made on NPR at 6 hour intervals, com-

mencing at midnight EST tonight, keeping you apprised of this developing situation.

There is one other item that I would like to mention. To the group that I spoke of earlier,
I would address the following comments. I can assume that you are patriotic Americans
concerned with the state of your nation. Whoever you are, it’s time to get out your fire-
arms and lock and load. Whatever your previous motives, your country needs you now.
I have executed a blanket Presidential Pardon for all individual involved. If you will come
forward and identify yourselves to the nearest military authority, you will be provided
with documents verifying your Pardons and any arms and munitions you may need or
desire. If you have any questions Gary, Ron or Clarence, contact me.

God Bless America and God Bless the American People.

Thank you and good night.

“Do you think he means us Gary?” Clarence asked.

“Well, he sure as hell wasn’t speaking to the Pep Boys now was he?” Gary huffed. “I
wonder how long he’s known and who told him?”

“I can’t tell you how long he’s known partner,” Ron said, “But I’d bet my bottom dollar
that Marshal Marshall is behind those comments.”

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 25 – General Green?

Don’t ever play poker with Ronald, you’d lose. Marshall Thomas was no longer a Depu-
ty US Marshal; he was a full US Marshal. However, in exchange for revealing the identi-
ties of the men to Nelson, he had extracted the pardons for the men, in advance. The
Acting President had sent the message the only way he knew how because no one at
Moon Shadows knew exactly where the men had gone. Those that did know were al-
ready at the ranch. Contrary to the opinions of some, Gary knew exactly what he was
doing when he’d revealed the secrets to Ray. Only a failing memory had caused him to
not mention the downing of the power lines. Ray had passed the test.

The three of them talked it over for quite a spell and then decided that since Nelson had
been on the up and up to this point, they might as well go see the Army down in Flag-
staff and get those pardons. Nelson had said they could have anything they needed or
desired and they desired a lot of things though they needed little. Derek could have his
Abrams tanks back and maybe they could get a couple of those M109A6 self-propelled
artillery things; or, maybe some smaller 105mm guns. Nah, the tanks had 120mm can-
ons, they were small enough. They were low on AT-4s so they’d ask for some of them
plus maybe a few dozen of the LAW rockets to haul around on their horses.

Why buy camo netting when the Army bought it by the truckload? Those Chinese guys
probably had tanks, so they’d better stock up on TOW missiles, too. And those Stingers
worked pretty well, so a few dozen of them might be in order. They had all the 40mm
grenades they could use, but they only had a couple of dozen of the M67’s apiece, bet-
ter get some of those; and, a guy could never have too many Claymores, now could he?

They didn’t have anything that qualified as a light machinegun, did you suppose the Ar-
my had any BAR’s and any Tommy guns around? And, rather than get more Hummers
with Mk-19’s or Ma-Deuces, why not just get a couple of those M1117 ASC’s that
mounted a Mk-19, a Ma-Deuce and came with an M-249 SAW? They got the pardons
and almost everything on the list. The only BAR’s still around were in museums and the
service model Tommy guns only used the box magazines, so they passed on them.
The SAWs were replaced with M240s, ‘cause they really worked.

The Army offered to erect a few Quonset huts to hold the munitions and to add the ca-
mo netting. From the way the Army treated them one would have thought that they were
Batman, Superman and the Incredible Hulk. The Army promoted Ryan to 1st Lieutenant
and made him their liaison officer. That way he got to stay home with Jennifer and be on
active duty at the same time. They were in tall cotton. However, sooner or later you end
up having to pay the piper.

Gary said that everything was Ron’s fault and they made Ron a General and Clarence
and he Bird Colonels, Gary ought to learn to stop passing the buck. They figured out
that they could tie a LAW rocket on the saddle like a bedroll and they went riding every
day, armed for anyone stupid enough to come along. One can relate a set of events
humorously or stick to the cold hard facts. Humor is good – it is disarming. C-4 isn’t, it’s

425
explosive. And, they hadn’t forgotten to replenish their stores of explosives.

They declined the Army’s offer to erect the huts; they didn’t want the Army to know
where they lived. It just sounded too good to be true. The Army offered a squad of in-
structors to teach them how to use all of the equipment. Let’s face it, you don’t just put a
round in a 155mm gun and toss in a couple of bags of powder and hope you hit the tar-
get. They accepted the training, but insisted that they receive it at Camp Navajo rather
than the instructors coming to the ranch. Most of the equipment they asked for was to
provide for the defenses of the ranch. If they indeed had to face the Chinese, it would
be on their terms, not the terms of either the American or Chinese Army’s. Even that pill
that Gary took that partially overcame his neuropathy only went so far. His hands and
feet were a little better, but that’s all.

Ron reminded Gary of something he’d said over and over during the ‘Tony time’, if it
sounds too good to be true, it probably is. After hearing numerous of Nelson’s speech-
es, Ron began referring to him as ‘Slick Willy, Jr.’. He went along with accepting the
pardons and getting the military equipment, but he flat out told everyone that if they re-
vealed the location of the ranch to the Army, he’d personally plant them 6’ deep. The
Army was also generous when it came to medical supplies and Jennifer took 3 5-ton
truckloads. They erected their own Quonset huts and camouflaged them all by them-
selves. Derek inspected the Abrams closely, bowing to Ron’s attitude and removed a
new piece of equipment with which he was unfamiliar. Only then did he accept the
tanks. They found similar devices in the M1117’s and removed them.

Satellites revealed that the Chinese ships began sailing on March 10, 2011. They did
not reveal the submarines that only surfaced at night in the shadows of the large ships.
The American fast attack submarines only caught up with the Chinese after they sailed.
Those Kilo class boats the Chinese had were just plain impossible to hear when they
sailed along at 4 knots. There were as many Chinese submarines as American 688i
class boats. Every time the Americans sunk another ship, they lost another LA class
sub to a wire guided Chinese torpedo. After a single day’s engagement, the American
sub commanders thought better of their approach and withdrew to find a better ap-
proach. They had sunk some of the Kilo’s, but a one for one tradeoff wasn’t in the Amer-
ican’s best interest.

The sub commanders were instructed to back off. The US carriers would meet the Chi-
nese head on and the US would attempt to stop them that way. Since it appeared that
the Chinese were taking a polar route, Nelson also ordered aircraft to the Alaskan air
bases that remained. The Chinese may not have had a battle fleet, but that didn’t mean
that they couldn’t mount weapons on the transport ships. And for the past several years,
the weapons of choice for many militaries, including the Chinese, were missiles of vari-
ous varieties. The missiles didn’t know that they weren’t being fired from a Frigate or
Destroyer or Cruiser. They just went where they were aimed. The Americans only
stealth fighter was the F-22 Raptor. The F-117 Fighter was a bomber, the same as the

426
B-2. Somewhere along the line the Joint Strike Fighter program got stalled. And, the F-
22’s and F-117’s were land-based aircraft, not carrier aircraft. And, keep in mind, the F-
117 only carries 2 bombs. They were reassembled up at Groom Lake and ready to fly.

China had announced a cut in its Army of up to ½ million in 2003. They used the wrong
symbol; it wasn’t a minus, but a plus. Instead of going down to 2 million, they went up to
3 million. In accordance with provisions in the Military Service Law of the PRC, male cit-
izens from 18 to 35 years of age who are fit for military service, excluding those enlisted
for active service, shall be regimented into militia units to perform reserve service. The
militia has two categories: the primary and the ordinary. A selected group of militiamen
under the age of 28, including soldiers discharged from active service and other per-
sons who have received or are selected for military training, are regimented into the
primary militia; other male citizens belonging to the age group of 18 to 35, who are qual-
ified for reserve service are regimented into the ordinary militia. The primary militia may
recruit female citizens when necessary. Now, assuming that 600 million plus Chinese
survived, how big would that PLA (People Liberation Army-the reserve or militia) be?
More than a few, that’s for sure. They had more soldiers than they had equipment or
room on the ships.

The Chinese also built any number of fighter aircraft, usually licensed or modified ver-
sion of Russian aircraft. The Yak-38 Forger and the Yak-141 Freestyle became particu-
larly popular with the Chinese. They were s/vtol aircraft and did not require a carrier.
The Yak-38 was a lot like the Harrier. The fleet, though it wasn’t big enough to haul all
of China’s millions of soldiers was rather large and every ship had a minimum of one
and sometimes two of the s/vtol aircraft. The Russians had basically abandoned the
Yak-141 in the mid 1990’s but Boris Yeltsin licensed the aircraft to raise funds for the
Russian Republic. Check it out; it’s all out there on the net to read about.

But, the American pilots are better trained than the Chinese pilots, right? Sure they are,
ask any American pilot. And we all know that every aircraft lost in Korea and Viet Nam
was due to flack or a SAM’s, right? Throughout the 1990’s and the 2000’s the Chinese
were steadily building their forces and training their pilots. Maybe they called their
schools ‘bottom gun’ and ‘blue flag’, but they had them. The principal problem with the
Russian and Chinese air forces had been the insistence that the aircraft be controlled
from the ground. But then, Hollywood made Top Gun and explained how one should
train their pilots. I don’t know if the Chinese like popcorn, but they sure liked that movie.

It wasn’t as if China didn’t warn the US. On July 23, 2004 one of the news channels, ei-
ther FOX or CNN, carried a story about the Chinese warning the US about further arm-
ing of Taiwan. Or, maybe the TV reporters got it wrong back in 2004. A vast force of
several thousand ships had departed China. The attack subs took out several, including
tankers. An army may travel on its stomach but the vehicles eat fuel and every tanker
lost meant that the Chinese would have to locate alternate fuel supplies once they got to
the US. The missile attacks had successfully taken out several west coast refineries and
the pipeline terminals didn’t all go to the coast. When it became evident that the inva-
sion was inevitable, the Army cut off those pipelines.

427
The missions flown out of Alaska had mixed results. The F-117’s were fairly successful
but then the US fleet of F-117’s was never very large, something on the order of 60 air-
craft. The B-2’s were also employed, but there were far fewer of them. The Chinese
SAM’s effectively kept most of the F-15’s and other aircraft at arm’s length. The overall
effect was that more than 75% of the Chinese fleet made it to the US. During WW II, the
Germans had expectations of where the invasion would come. The American had simi-
lar expectations in 2011, but the Chinese had been reading the Americans plans and
landed where it best suited them, further north.

Fortunately the last 2 Divisions and the guard were easily diverted to the Pacific North-
west. The remaining Divisions shifted only a portion of their forces, assuming the Chi-
nese would continue along the entire coast, invading at the easiest landing spots. In the
cases where the Americans guessed correctly the armor and artillery essentially
stopped the invasion cold. Where the estimates were incorrect, America was forced to
rely on its air forces. In this instance the Chinese Yak 38’s and Yak-141’s, though not as
capable as the F/A-18’s, F-15s, F-16’s and F-22’s, had at least equal numbers and pi-
lots who were capable of pushing their aircraft to the edge of their envelopes.

Expecting an easy victory the Americans were surprised at the abilities of the Chinese.
It was clearly a case of the enemy being prepared far in advance and having devoted
nearly their entire national resource base to the task. In the long haul, one should ex-
pect that the US would prevail, but the Chinese also outnumbered the US Army and
their latest equipment was surprisingly good. The major shortcoming in the enemy’s
plan was their serious underestimation of the attitude of the American population as a
whole. In this, the Acting President had been correct. The individual militias rose to the
challenge.

In the state of Washington, the Chinese landed 3-armored Divisions and 5-infantry Divi-
sions. These forces were supported by nearly 500 aircraft. In opposition, the US had the
2 Army Divisions, which included 2 armored Regiments. The National Guard supplied 2
additional Divisions, which included 2 additional armored Regiments. The Army was
supported by nearly 100 attack helicopters and about 400 fighters and bombers. Addi-
tional support came from a carrier task group lying about 150 miles offshore and includ-
ed 90 aircraft. The 101st Air Cavalry was airlifted to further support the US forces. The
Chinese had the advantage of numbers, but the Americans had the advantage of
fighting on their home turf.

To the south, along the Oregon coast, the Chinese fielded 2-armored Divisions and 5-
infantry Divisions. The Americans responded by shifting 3-armored Regiments and 3-
infantry Divisions plus an unknown number of attack helicopters and a squadron of A-10
aircraft in addition to about 300 fighters and bombers. The advantages were about the
same. The Americans had been right in their assessment that the enemy would field a
large force along the California coast, and all the remaining armor, infantry and US air-

428
craft were available to defend California. Faced by superior numbers of forces on all
fronts, the US used it greatest asset, its aircraft. The Chinese had anticipated this tactic
and their forces were well equipped with large supplies of SAM’s. The Chinese were be-
ing hurt, but the USAF was losing too many planes.

The small boxes lay on the ground right where Derek had left them. A sergeant finally
noticed them and reported the find to his superior. The Lieutenant told him to put the
locator beacons back in supply. Up at the ranch, they did things differently too. They
erected the camo netting before they moved in the equipment or erected the huts. They
also left a couple of men armed with M107s on 180 just north of Williams in case they
were followed. They weren’t, the Army had been counting on technology to locate them.
But, the Army was betrayed by the very people they were ‘helping’. The locator beacons
never left Flagstaff and aircraft over flights of the region failed to disclose the Quonset
huts being erected. Derek even removed the communication sets from the 2 tanks and
2 ASC’s and replaced them with 2-meter radios.

Interesting enough, the Presidential Pardons were general in nature, specifying no par-
ticular acts for which they were being pardoned. The way Gary read them, the pardons
simply forgave them, legally, for everything they’d done that violated the laws up to
01Mar11. Ron tossed the tin stars in the trash, muttering, “I ain’t no General.” The ea-
gles followed, they were friends, not a General and his staff.

Ryan put the radio the Army had given him in the radio shack and they installed and
hooked up the antenna. However, he had no intention of using the unit for anything
more than listening. His commission had been changed, by the way, from that of a re-
serve officer to a regular officer.

America loves a winner, and will not tolerate a loser, this is why America has never, and
will never, lose a war. It’s the unconquerable soul of man, not the nature of the weapon
he uses that insures victory. Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do
and they will surprise you with their ingenuity. [Patton, on two different occasions.]

Faced with a superior force and unable to defeat the invading hoard, the Americans
suddenly withdrew. The Chinese, sensing victory, pursued the Americans. When the
Chinese were sufficiently strung out, the US forces, aided by local militia, cut off the
long Chinese columns and attacked from the shadows. The tide slowly began to turn.
Lessons from over 200 years before were remembered and the entire US military re-
sorted to guerilla tactics. The Warthogs and Apaches were much more effective this
time and the Chinese lost large numbers of armor and infantry.

429
“The way I see it,” Ron offered, “Is that we aren’t a big enough force, even with all of
those fancy weapons we have, to do much more than defend this part of the area. I say
we just stay tucked in right here on the ranch and bottle up the highway.”

“Yeah,” Clarence agreed.

“I’m just tired Ron,” Gary said, “It suits me just fine. We don’t even have to move an
inch. Those 155mm canons will stop anything on the highway. I suppose that it wouldn’t
hurt to register them. That’s what they called it wasn’t it? Registering the fire.”

“I think so,” Ron said, “But that will pretty much destroy the highway won’t it?”

“So?” Gary asked, “We can drive around if we have to. What do you think Ray?”

“I think we could plant some of those anti-tank mines in the desert in case anyone tries
to bypass the road,” Ray suggested.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 26 – True Colors

15May11…

American forces succeeded in halting the Chinese advances on several fronts today,
the announcer droned on, Taking advantage of the Sierra Nevada range, forces stalled
the Chinese advance. In Oregon and Washington, the Cascade Range has proven to
be an even greater obstacle to the invading forces. B-1B bombers carrying large loads
of conventional explosives were responsible for wiping out what some estimate to be as
much as 2 Divisions of enemy forces and their armor units.

One item of local interest. Having accepted President Nelson’s pardons, and a large
store of weapons, munitions and supplies, the infamous leaders of the Palmdale Militia,
Gary Olsen, Ronald Green and Clarence Rawlings, have apparently disappeared. The
men, who were responsible for many questionable activities during 2005 and beyond,
accepted their pardons from the Army in Flagstaff. They are therefore believed to be lo-
cated somewhere in the western Arizona or eastern California area.

At Mt. Weather today, President Nelson reported that President Edwards suffered a
heart attack and, despite heroic efforts to revive him, died. There is no word on who
President Nelson will appoint as his Vice President. In view of the ongoing war on the
west coast, President Nelson indicated that President Edward’s body would be interred
in North Carolina without the usual pomp and circumstance. President Nelson also not-
ed that due to the ongoing emergency, food rationing would be implemented.

“Infamous, huh?” Ron laughed, “We’ll at least we have a title.”

“Yeah well, Edwards was the picture of health, too,” Gary said. “A heart attack? I don’t
believe that for one by God moment.”

“How do you know that Gar-Bear?” Ron asked, “No one has seen hide or hair of the
man since last Thanksgiving.”

“Looked pretty good on TV just before Thanksgiving,” Gary retorted.

“I wish we had the rest of the Palmdale Militia here to help us out,” Clarence mused.

“Maybe we should go get them,” Gary said.

“Where?” Ron asked.

“If you where them, where would you be?” Gary asked.

“The Underground City?” Ron hesitantly suggested.

431
“Yeah Ron, that’s where I would be,” Clarence agreed.

“Well, it’s easy enough to find out,” Gary said, “We can send Ryan and Derek to find
out. And another thing, we ought to repair that highway; I don’t believe they have any
idea where we are.”

“Hell Gary,” Ron said, “There’s all sort of people in Flagstaff who know where the ranch
is.”

“True, but they don’t know who we are,” Gary replied. “And even if they do, with our
reputation for killing people we disagree with, who would be foolish enough to say any-
thing?”

Not only were the 46 other members of the Palmdale Militia at the Underground City,
several of the residents of Moon Shadows had joined them. Chris and Patti were there
as was Dick and his family. Even Jan and her kids had tagged along. They couldn’t stay
in Palmdale; they didn’t have lights or gas. And, although the fallout hadn’t affected
Palmdale, there was nothing to stand between them and the Chinese when they at-
tacked, so they bugged out. Some of the lessons the three old geezers had taught had
stuck. They were well equipped with weapons, ammo and food. They even had a few of
the 12kw and 15kw generators.

Derek called back to Arizona on Dick’s Ham radio and told them to erect a large cover
from the camo netting, the Palmdale Militia would there in a week. In Arizona, the three
old geezers were delighted with the news. They had a whole Quonset hut full of camo
netting and another 2 full of more hut components. Everyone got busy erecting the net-
ting and assembling the huts. With the huts emptied of the netting and hut components,
they soon had 12 huts available to provide housing for the militia. They also had a large
area covered over to conceal the vehicles.

“Here’s the deal Roy,” Derek explained. “We’re going to Williams, Arizona and turn
north on 180. If anything should happen to Ryan and me, go north on 180 until you spot
a place in the highway that has been repaired but not blacktopped. Stop there and honk
your horns a few times. Whatever you do, don’t get off the road. The area is pretty well
seeded with anti-tank mines.”

“Those three old farts still running the show?” Roy asked.

“Pretty much, yes,” Derek replied, “But they have some help now from Ryan’s stepfa-
ther. He’s a 30-year Army veteran. And, we have a full medical staff with a doctor and
nurses. Plus, they milked the Army for all it was worth when Nelson gave them those
pardons. We’ve got tanks, artillery, food and medical supplies to last us for years.”

432
“Out raising hell are they?” Roy asked.

“They are tucked away and aren’t doing a thing this time,” Derek explain,” I guess
they’re getting old.”

Wrong, Derek, they simply hadn’t had the forces to do much. And, it’s time for a nose
count. Ron, Gary & Clarence=3; the cousins=7; Damon and Derek=9; Ray, Stacy, Scott
and Ryan=13; John and Kevin=14, Kevin wasn’t worth a crap; David and his boys=19;
Ron’s 3 son-in-laws=22; Jim, Sam and Harry=25; the Palmdale Militia added 46, making
it 71; Chris, Matt and Dick=74. You could add Susan and Jan to the total, making it 76.
The regrouped Palmdale Militia was up by 25 members. But, they weren’t the Palmdale
Militia anymore, were they? They were the PFLA. No, those days were behind them too.
The group needed a new title, you know, something catchy. They narrowed down to 2
choices, The Spirit of ‘76 and Nelson’s Nationals. They opted for the latter, even though
the former was catchier; Nelson had made it all possible and if anyone were to get the
credit, it ought to be the President.

Of course the Army had insisted that they take lots of ammo, so it was put to good use,
and everyone spent long hours on the range. Ryan was proving to be the best shot; he
just sort of took to it naturally. The war seemed to be doing just fine without them, too.
The US forces were slowly, but steadily defeating the Chinese. The Air Forces were
slowly recapturing their kill ratio and it was finally up to 11 to 1. Those Chinese tanks
were pretty good but the Abrams was proving that it was still the best tank in the world.
The ASW forces were brought to bear and those Kilo class submarines the Chinese had
were being eliminated. Harpoon anti-ship missiles were eliminating the ships the Chi-
nese used to get to the US and as had been suggested, the US was winning.

The local militias that had lent the Army a hand in the worst days began to return home;
proud of the role they’d taken in stopping the Chinese. With the military operations re-
duced to mopping up pockets of resistance, President Nelson made another speech on
the radio.

My Fellow Americans,

The Chinese are all but defeated. In the next few days, I believe that this war will be
won. I wish to thank the militia groups who aided our military in its hour of need.

In view of the apparent victory, I am rescinding my Order pertaining to the firearms laws.
Effective immediately, all unregistered firearms and devices listed under the NFA must
be surrendered. I will ask Congress to reinstate all firearm laws up to and including the
assault weapons ban.

I regret that it will be necessary to continue food rationing, but low supplies of fuel have
prevented farmers from planting and harvesting their crops. And due to those fuel
shortages, it will be necessary to temporarily restrict travel to within 50 miles of your
homes.

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In view of the actions of the Chinese, it is obvious to me that this country needs the pro-
visions of the USA Patriot Act and I will request that Congress readopt the USA Patriot
Act and strengthen its provisions.

Finally, I pardoned Gary Olsen, Ronal Green and Clarence Rawlings. I cannot undo that
pardon. However, these men failed to come to the aid of their country. They have, in
fact, disappeared. I am sending US Marshal Marshall Thomas to find and arrest these
men. They are in possession of weapons and materials strictly prohibited by the NFA
and as such are felons. You should discount reports that these individuals are doing
nothing but good works.

Thank you and goodnight.

“There you go Gar-Bear,” Ron laughed, “You went and made us criminals.”

“Do you still believe that Edwards died of a heart attack?” Gary asked. “Are you still go-
ing to vote for this guy, Ronald? He’s just another Democrat and he has a taste of pow-
er. I guess we’re going to have to send him a message. Where is Mt. Weather, any-
way?”

“It’s in Bluemont, Virginia Gary,” Ray replied, “Mount Weather is the self-sustaining un-
derground command center for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The facility is the operational center – the hub – of approximately 100 other Federal Re-
location Centers, most of which are concentrated in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virgin-
ia, Maryland and North Carolina. Together this network of underground facilities consti-
tutes the backbone of America’s ‘Continuity of Government’ program. In the event of
nuclear war, declaration of martial law, or other national emergency, the President, his
cabinet and the rest of the Executive Branch would be ‘relocated’ to Mount Weather.”

“Where the hell is Bluemont, Virginia?” Gary asked.

“It is 46 miles from Washington DC,” Ray answered.

“And what do they do there besides hide out?” Gary continued.

“Well, they collect data on American citizens, store information and play war games,”
Ray explained. “They also do civil crisis management and maintain and update the ‘sur-
vivors list’.”

“You seem to be pretty well informed,” Gary responded.

“I use the Internet, too Gary,” Ray laughed.

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“The bottom line here is that FEMA is behind the whole thing, right?” Gary asked.

“That’s the bottom line Gar-Bear,” Ray agreed.

“We know how to deal with FEMA, don’t we guys?” Gary chuckled. “I expect that we’d
better start now before they turn those Red Cross voluntary centers into prisons. I am
putting a $100 bounty on the heads of all them FEMA people.”

“A $100 isn’t much,” Ron said.

“Well, then you’ll just have to kill a lot of them to make it pay, won’t you Ronald McDon-
ald?” Gary replied.

“FEMA is part of the Department of Homeland Security now so you’re going to be taking
on the whole federal government Gary,” Ray pointed out. “But they published their re-
sponse plan on the Internet. It’s funny what you said about the Red Cross; they’re right
in the thick of things. You really should read the response plan.”

“Oh, really?” Gary responded, surprised. “Probably got the news media involved, too.”

“Actually, I have no idea,” Ray said, “But why doesn’t the public know more about FEMA
and Mt. Weather? Did you ever wonder about that?”

“Did anyone ever see that Mel Gibson movie, Conspiracy Theory?” Gary asked. “It was
interesting. Gibson played a guy named Jerry Fletcher who was in love with a woman
he observed from afar. She worked for the government. Fletcher was an outspoken crit-
ic of that government. He had conspiracy theories for everything, from aliens to political
assassinations. One of his theories was accurate and some dangerous people wanted
him dead. Maybe that’s what we have here, one giant conspiracy.”

“I think you’ve been watching too many movies Gar-Bear,” Ron laughed.

“Yeah, like Predator vs. Alien?” Gary asked.

“That was a good comedy,” Ron protested. “Never laughed so hard in my life. But your
girlfriend wasn’t in it, so I can see why you didn’t watch it.”

“Does Sigourney Weaver even own a bra?” Clarence asked.

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 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 27 – Nelson’s Nationals

“34B-24-35,” Gary replied, “I use the Internet, too.

15Jun11…

Yep, they were the same crazy SOB’s he remembered, Roy admitted to himself. They
had the 2 Abrams back all right and a couple of those self-propelled arty pieces. And,
while you couldn’t see the place, how had they managed to deal with the heat signa-
tures? Gary probably had rigged something to cool off the houses chimneys like he’d
cooled off the pickups, he figured. Better living through technology.

“Well guys, the war is over,” Gary announced, “It’s time to stir things up.”

“I figure we’d better get Marshal Marshall before he gets us,” Gary suggested. “Guess
we’ll start in Flagstaff.”

“Gun him down in the street,” Ron proposed, “Make our reputation bigger and badder
and send a message to all of those folks who know where we live.”

“Anyone one have a legitimate idea?” Gary asked.

“Actually, Ron’s idea isn’t all that bad,” Roy suggested. “You’d have people afraid to
open their mouths and looking over their shoulders.”

“People who look over their shoulders is good,” Gary smirked. “Fear makes the wolf
bigger than he is.” (German Proverb)

“I like, “Fear is a tyrant and a despot, more terrible than the rack, more potent than the
snake,” Roy said.

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified, terror
which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance,” Clarence added.

“Not that one,” Gary groaned, “He was a Democrat.”

“What ARE you people talking about?” Ray asked.

“George Bush,” they all replied in unison.

“He was in a mental hospital the last I heard,” Ray said.

“I’ll be back,” Gary replied.

“He got killed”, Roy said, “Must have believed his movies and thought he was bullet-
proof.”

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“So that’s why he never showed up,” Gary said.

They didn’t really have a plan beyond gunning down Marshall Thomas. They were fresh
out of ideas. America had suffered enough already, so blowing up bridges and taking
down power lines just didn’t seem like the thing to do. Maybe they could head east and
find targets of opportunity.

Without realizing it, Ray had set Gary off. In May of 1968 when the biggest tornado in
the history of Iowa had hit his hometown, Charles City, the American Red Cross had
shown up all right, just like they were supposed to. The only thing was the Red Cross
had charged people $3.50 for those ‘free’ meals. Gary had also heard, though it was
just a story that the Red Cross actually charged soldiers for donuts and coffee in WW II.
Probably wasn’t true, but still…

Chris and Matt sanded off all of the camo paint and they painted the 5-ton trucks to look
like commercial delivery trucks. They did the same with several of the pickups. An as-
sortment of armaments and supplies was loaded onto a truck and they hooked up the
Airstream trailers to the pickups. A 4th pickup pulled the fuel trailer. Everything had
USMS logos.

They drove down to Flagstaff and bought a used Greyhound sized bus and painted the
windows black. Chris carefully lettered US Marshal’s Service on the sides of the vehicle.
Then, they returned to Flagstaff and introduced the Marshal Marshall Thomas and a few
of his pals to their Creator. They took a few extra minutes to retrieve the badges and
ID’s from the group of US Marshal that lay dead in the street. Everyone one had a set of
fake US Marshals credentials, all they’d needed was the badge and the credential case
and it was easier to take them than make them. And the US Marshal thing was to make
sure that Nelson got full credit. US Marshals are appointed by the President or the At-
torney General. So, if the kidnappings were attributed to the USMS, the President would
get the credit (blame).

They had a plan and it was very poetic. They had all that pig wire and lots of barbed
wire left over. They went several miles from the ranch, and using harvested pines, built
a small prison camp. It wasn’t overly large; they only needed to house a few hundred
people. It was covered by camo netting and like the ranch, was essentially invisible.
They didn’t figure it would take more than a half dozen guards to keep the prisoners in
check. Now they had a relo camp of their own to put the FEMA people through what
they were doing to others. Feed them MRE’s and not give them anything but tents to
live in and no fires.

Their tactic would to be to arrest the FEMA people while acting as US Marshals. Com-
munications around the country were still pretty bad, after all. The scheme might not
hold up forever, but it was a start. FEMA has ten regional offices, and two area offices.

437
Each region serves several states, and regional staffs work directly with the states to
help plan for disasters, develop mitigation programs, and meet needs when major dis-
asters occur. In addition, FEMA had about 96 other locations, plus Mt. Weather.

They decided that 26 men would travel the country arresting the FEMA people and re-
turn them to the camp in the bus. And why 26 men, you might ask? Well, back when I
was young a hundred years ago, I really liked the TV show 26 Men. Of the show, one
reviewer wrote, “This was a good, solid Western about the Arizona Rangers with Tris
Coffin giving a fine performance every week. Worth seeing if it ever shows up some-
where. It also seemed to be a bridge between the kiddie Westerns (like Roy Rogers or
Hopalong) and such adult fare as Have Gun Will Travel. 26 Men also had THE BEST
THEME SONG OF ALL THE WESTERNS: This is the story of 26 men who rode the Ar-
izona territory. . . 26 men who lived to ride again rode out to answer duty’s call; 26 men
who lived to fight again rode out for the right and the liberty of all. With a great driving
beat!”

The late Marty Robbins paid them a tribute, too: “Big Iron”

To the town of Agua Fria, rode a stranger one fine day.

Hardly spoke to folks around him, didn’t have too much to say.
No one dared to ask his business, no one dared to make a slip.
For the stranger there amongst them, had a big iron on his hip.
Big iron on his hip.

It was early in the morning, when he rode into the town.

He came riding from the south side, slowly lookin’ all around.
He’s an outlaw loose and running, came the whisper from each lip.
And he’s here to do some business, with the big iron on his hip.
Big iron on his hip.

In this town there lived an outlaw, by the name of Texas Red.

Many men had tried to take him and that many men were dead.
He was vicious and a killer, though a youth of twenty-four.
And the notches on his pistol, numbered one and nineteen more.
One and nineteen more.

Now the stranger started talking, made it plain to folks around;

Was an Arizona Ranger, wouldn’t be too long in town.
He came here to take an outlaw back, alive, or maybe dead.
And he said it didn’t matter; he was after Texas Red.
After Texas Red.

Wasn’t long before the story was relayed to Texas Red.

But the outlaw didn’t worry; men that tried before were dead.
Twenty men had tried to take him; twenty men had made a slip.
Twenty-one would be the Ranger; with the big iron on his hip.

438
Big iron on his hip.

The morning passed so quickly, it was time for them to meet.

It was twenty past eleven, when they walked out in the street.
Folks were watching from their windows; every-body held their breath.
They knew this handsome Ranger, was about to meet his death.
About to meet his death.

There was forty feet between them, when they stopped to make their play.
And the swiftness of the Ranger, is still talked about today.
Texas Red had not cleared leather, when a bullet fairly ripped.
And the Ranger’s aim was deadly, with the big iron on his hip.
Big iron on his hip.

It was over in a moment, and the folks had gathered round.

There before them lay the body of the outlaw, on the ground.
Oh, he might have gone on living, but he made one fatal slip.
When he tried to match the Ranger, with the big iron on his hip.
Big iron on his hip.

Big iron. Big iron.

When he tried to match the Ranger, with the big iron on his hip.

The 26 men set off towards the east, 3 old cowboys, 4 Indians and 19 others. Their first
stop would be FEMA Region I, Boston, MA. It was a long drive, and when they arrested
the people, they were so tightly packed in the bus they could hardly breathe. The first
adventure took a week and they now had their first ‘guests’. The one bus clearly wasn’t
enough, so they bought a second and fixed it up to match the first. The Region II office
had been in New York but now was in Albany. And they now had enough bus space,
although the people were still packed in like sardines. Back to Arizona they went. They
were using up the oldest MRE’s first. Most of them were still good. The nearest anything
to the camp was a good 20 miles or more, so the people could scream their heads off
and no one would hear them. Their guests noticed that the wire was all attached to the
poles with insulators and naturally assumed that the fence was electrified. The pair of
wires running down and into the ground added to the illusion. The big show that Derek
and the other guards made of turning off the electricity fed the illusion. Of course, the
Claymore mines that faced inward weren’t all that appealing either.

They took a week off to avoid being predictable and skipped Region III, Washington DC.
Besides, they needed to repaint the busses to Olive Drab and add US Army markings.
This time, they went as soldiers who were rushing to protect the FEMA employees in
the Region IV office in Atlanta. The folks were so grateful to be rescued and removed
from in harm’s way that they didn’t have a clue for almost 2 hours. It turned out that a lot
of the old MRE’s weren’t quite up to par, what a shame. Now, they needed a new ap-
proach. They waited 9 days and headed to Region VI in Denton, Texas. This time, they
were there to relieve the guard, not to haul the people to safety.

439
Scott did a commendable job of acting as the officer in charge and the phone call that
Ryan placed to the Denton office about an hour later warning of a suitcase nuke had the
people begging for the Army to transport them away from the building. Scott called
Ryan back at the pay phone and told him the people wanted to be evacuated and to
bring the busses. They had removed the paint from the busses windows and the people
didn’t have a clue until they were a few miles from Denton and they repainted the win-
dows from the outside.

They were being right friendly to the FEMA folks; they gave them water to bathe once a
week and had been forced to dig into their newer supplies of MRE’s. They had to let
them bathe, do you have any idea how hot it gets in Arizona in the summer? Region VIII
was close, Denver. But, they waited for three weeks and then the US Marine Corps
showed up in Denver led by Becky, dressed as a Lt. Colonel. And, they were only there
to lend support to the National Guard not to take their place. The Marines must have
intimidated the Guard; they began to ‘desert’. It began with one or two; then escalated
to three, four and on some days five. The Marines also had to draw a truckload of
MRE’s from the Army, because they were ‘running low’. Becky asked the National
Guard Captain what kind of an operation he was running and warned him that he’d bet-
ter take his remaining troops and locate those cowardly deserters. An hour later, the
Denver FEMA staff was on their way to Arizona.

There were 4 regional FEMA offices remaining, but two were scratched from the list,
Seattle and San Francisco. All that left was Region V, Chicago and Region VII, Kansas
City. Obviously the US Marshals couldn’t be trusted nor could the Army and Marines.
And, they had to go through KC on the way back from Chicago, so the FBI went to in-
vestigate rumors that this whole scheme was an inside job under the direction of some-
one in the Chicago office, which of course had been relocated from Chicago because of
the nuclear strike.

The FBI took the folks in 2s and 3s for questioning but they seemed all to go to lunch
after being questioned. It was true, too. They were sitting in one of the busses enjoying
a gourmet MRE. The FBI headed back to Arizona and stopped for fuel and to rent two
additional busses in KC. There hadn’t been time for anyone to figure out what ruse had
been used to clear out the Chicago office and it worked just fine in KC. What was that
Clarence or someone asked about how you kill a snake? Except for the west coast of-
fices and DC, the body of FEMA was headless. And, they had killed no one. Of course,
feeding them MRE’s probably constituted torture under the Geneva Convention, but
tough. They drove the empty busses north a ways to the Grand Canyon and ran them
over the side.

440
 Preparations II – the Revolution – Chapter 28 – The Big Prize

My Fellow Americans…

In all my years in this great land of ours, I thought I had seen about every bad thing
there was to see. Apparently, I was mistaken. Over the course of the past several
weeks, the US Marshal I sent to the Flagstaff area and several of his companions were
gunned down in the streets of that city.

Thereafter, a series of attacks began on the regional FEMA offices. Seven of those of-
fices were attacked and the employees kidnapped. Despite a nationwide manhunt, no
sign of the employees has been found.

Congress has authorized a reward of $50 million for the safe return of the captive FEMA
employees. Congress has also authorized, at my insistence, a $50 million reward for
information leading to the arrests of Gary Olsen, Ronald Green and Clarence Rawlings.
Congress took it upon itself to declare that these payments shall not be deemed as in-
come to the recipient. Therefore, the rewards shall not be subject to state or federal in-
come taxes.

I urge all American to help us bring these killers to justice and locate the missing FEMA
employees or their bodies.

Thank you and good day.

“Would you listen to that,” Clarence said, “$100 million dollars.”

“Go get Derek and Jennifer, Clarence,” Gary asked, “I think it’s about time to make
crime pay.”

“What’s up Dad?” Derek asked when he appeared.

“Just sit tight for now,” Gary requested.

“Did you want to see me Mr. Olsen? Jennifer asked.

“How would you like to do the company a favor, Jennifer? Gary asked.

“Sure, anything,” she replied, “What do you want me to do?”

“It’s like this,” Gary explained. “That champion of freedom, President Nelson, has put up
a $50 million dollar reward for those FEMA people and another $50 million for our cap-
ture. Tax free, no less! Derek, I want you and the other people to move every single
thing on this ranch back to California to that Underground City. And son, do it quickly
and quietly. Jennifer, when the move is complete, you are going to discover those FE-
MA people and the three of us are just going to happen to be checking on them when

441
the law shows up. You’ll be a hero and we’ll have $100 million.”

“How do you know they won’t just shoot you were you stand?” Derek asked.

“Jennifer is going go to the media first, that’s why,” Gary said.

“And then I suppose we come roaring in like the 7th Cavalry and rescue you, right?”
Derek asked.

“There ya go,” Gary laughed.

“It will take at least a month to move everything to California,” Derek opined.

“That’s ok son, we have plenty of MRE’s,” Gary said.

It took 35 days, actually. When everything was safely moved to California, they left the
homes sitting right where they were, Derek took the ‘refugees’ their daily rations, and he
loosened a section of the netting, allowing it to fall away. He returned to the ranch
where all of the other men were concealed in the now empty shelter. Shortly thereafter,
Jennifer happened to ‘discover’ the prison camp. She told the people that there was a
lock on the power switch so she’d have to go for help. She had only been to Flagstaff
that one time and everyone figured that no one would recognize her.

Jennifer drove on down to Flagstaff, went by the cluster of news vans and told them
she’d found the FEMA hostages and needed to know where the Sheriff’s office was.
The news media was more than willing to show her where the Sheriff’s office was locat-
ed; they were on the verge of the story of the century. The Sheriff rounded up all of his
deputies and Jennifer led them back to the prison camp. And a miracle occurred, the
three old geezers were at the camp, unarmed, jeering those poor FEMA captives
through the fence. It instantly turned into a media circus. The old men were handcuffed
and thrown into the Sheriff’s vehicles, the lock shot off the switch box and the prisoners
finally set free. One of the prisoners said something was awfully strange; their captors
had removed all of those funny little mines the week before.

They loaded the released captives aboard busses and transported them to Flagstaff.
They were in surprisingly good health; they’d lost weight, but other than that, the doctors
who examined them could find nothing wrong. President Nelson, in what could only be
described as a politically motivated stunt, flew to Flagstaff to greet the freed prisoners
and see the deadly trio. He made sure that the media covered his presenting the check
for $100 million to that brave young Doctor, Jennifer. With crowd of media following her
every move, Jennifer took the check to Wells Fargo and deposited the check in the ac-
count of The Three Amigos Corporation, her employer. She then got in her pickup and
drove off.

442
President Nelson visited the three old men in jail and said they sure didn’t look like
much to him. They were washed up, he told them, and they would pay big time for their
crimes. He headed for the airport to board his plane and return to the east coast. As the
aircraft took off, 4 Stinger missiles were fired at it and it crashed and burned. At the
same time, a group of heavily armed, masked men attacked the jail and freed the pris-
oners. With the police in heavy pursuit, they headed north on 180 from Williams. They
seemed to be drunk, veering their vehicles like they were, but the police vehicles hit the
mines they’d placed in the road and the pursuit ended as rapidly as it had begun.

11Nov11…Underground City, California…

“Thank you for everything people,” Gary said. “You’ve turned this little refuge into quite
the little city. The three of us, and our wives, will just stay here and live out our days.
Ron, Clarence and I have made out a check to each family for $1 million. You are free
to stay or leave. We have enough of everything to last us for years.”

“I second that,” Ron said, “It’s been a wild ride. The only thing I would have done differ-
ent was to call our group ‘The Freedom Riders’.”

“You all be good to each other,” Clarence added.

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 1 – Dune Buggy’s

The Underground City…

The three old men were looking forward to their retirement. They’d bought the piece of
land the mine was on, after the fact, and each was living under one of the assumed
names that the false ID’s provided. They had quietly formed another corporation, Free-
dom Riders, Inc., a Nevada corporation, and just as quietly transferred the funds to a
bank in the Bahamas and back to Wells Fargo in the name of the new corporation. Even
after giving each family $1 million, they still had all the money they could ever hope to
use. Gary had several million left over from the Wesley Clark money and they were sit-
ting on an additional $45 million.

Ray and Stacy stayed on and consequently, so did Ryan and Jennifer. The people from
Palmdale decided to return home and see if there was anything left of Moon Shadows.
Thankfully, Jan went with them. Jan, you see, had lost a lot of that excess weight and
she was back to within 10 pounds of what she’d weighed in the mid ‘90’s when they’d
met. Both Gary and Ron had to watch themselves to avoid leering. Some things it
seems never change. Mutt was raising hell about getting Britney, Aaron and Erik back,
but Damon offered to pay her the child support he’d owe until their 18th birthdays and
that took care of that. Derek wasn’t sure what he wanted to do, so he stayed on until he
figured something out.

John wanted to go to work at the prison west of Blythe (Chuckawalla) so he moved into
Blythe. Being a Correctional Officer in California was a great job because they had a
powerful union. Kevin just wanted to get anywhere that Ron wasn’t and Ron gave him a
few thousand and put him on a bus to LA, telling him not to come back, period. Brenda
and Jennifer wanted to get back to Ft. Smith and Paula and Mark to Austin. Somehow
Ron and Linda ended up being without children one more time. The quiet was deafen-
ing. The cousins stayed, they liked their jobs just fine and the relative newcomers, Jim,
Sam and Harry and their wives still didn’t have anything to go back to and they felt
needed there so they stayed on. There were 3 reservations in the area, Fort Mojave,
Chemehuevi Valley and Colorado River, so Jennifer had lots of people to help. Ryan
resigned his commission in the Army to work with Jennifer and Stacy took up the task of
educating the younger generation in Blythe.

“So, who’s running the country?’ Ron asked.

“Darned if I know,” Gary replied, “The Speaker of the House I suppose.”

“Who is he and what are his politics?” Ron asked.

“All I can tell you is that the Democrats control the House and Senate, so he must be a
Democrat,” Gary responded. “That pretty much tells you what his politics are.”

“Are we due for a Republican yet?” Clarence asked.

444
“Probably not, Clarence,” Ron replied, “They seem to be taking 8 year turns these days.
But, you never know about these things, do you? Anymore it seems like Republicans
are a minority in this country and those of us who care about the country are labeled as
militant right-wing Fascists.”

“Two out of three ain’t bad,” Clarence chuckled, “We are a might testy and we’re defi-
nitely right-wing. But flying that Gadsden Flag is sort of announcing ourselves ain’t it?”

“You have to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything Clarence,” Gary chimed in.
“There’s nothing wrong with that flag. I’ve been meaning to ask you something. Why did
they use 4 Stinger missiles? Wouldn’t 2 have been enough?”

“Wanted to be sure for one thing,” Ron replied, “And it’s not like we’re short on Stingers.
We probably have more than the Army.”

“How did they get them to hit that plane without paying someone to modify them?” Gary
asked.

“Well, it seems that Damon just pulled out this little printed circuit board and that disa-
bled the IFF,” Ron said.

“Really? I paid that guy $50 thousand to modify those 2 missiles were used in Atlanta,”
Gary groaned.

“You weren’t paying him for what he did Gar-Bear, you were paying him for what he
knew,” Ron laughed.

“But how did Damon know which circuit board to pull?” Gary asked.

“He told me he just pulled the one labeled IFF,” Clarence explained.

Mt. Weather…

“So help me God.” With those words, the Speaker of the House, a Democrat from the
great state of Illinois became the new President of the United States. Jerry F. Costello
was now President and he quickly selected Michael Capuano from Massachusetts to be
his Vice President. Approval of Capuano was a foregone conclusion. Washington was
ready to reoccupy and all but the key DHS people returned to the Capitol. It was a real
shame about Nelson, but he had made it clear that he was a true Democrat in the end.
And, he had been right about one thing; America had certainly become an armed camp.

But, that was easily fixed with a new weapons ban and although the USA Patriot Act
was unpopular, it was sorely needed. The American people were nothing but children
and it took a strong central government to keep them in line. Of course, with all of those
factories destroyed, a lot of people would need government assistance for a long time,

445
but that’s what the middle class and the rich were for, to pay for the poor to sit on their
butts. Yes sir, this was going to be a Congress to be remembered. The Democrats had
absolute majorities in the House, the Senate and the White House. It was a shame
about the Supreme Court, but you couldn’t have everything.

The Underground City…

“Well, at least we have TV back,” Gary said, “I feel like I’ve missed several seasons of
Stargate-1.”

“You didn’t miss nothing Gary,” Clarence suggested. “I seen that show. They just
fighting a different bunch of aliens every week.”

“I wonder what she’s doing these days,” Gary muttered.

“Who?” Ron asked.

“Sigourney Weaver,” Gary said, “The person who made Alien worth watching.

“She’s 6’ tall Gar-Bear,” Ron protested. “Clarence, you’ve got to learn to watch what you
say. Now he’s off and running about her again.”

“Just right,” Gary said. “Eye level.”

“Who’s this guy from Illinois?” Ron asked.

“Never heard of him or that guy from Massachusetts,” Gary said. “Probably some of
Teddy’s cronies.”

“What do you think he meant about the Republicans doing a few things right by acci-
dent?” Clarence asked.

“I have no idea Clarence, but you can look for taxes to go up,” Gary said.

“Do you know what we need?” Ron asked.

“Tell me oh wise one,” Gary smirked.

“We need some of the Desert Patrol/Light Strike Vehicles. It is a modified Chenowth,
off-road, three-man, 2×4 racing vehicle. The DPV is designed to operate anywhere a
four-wheel drive can, with additional speed and maneuverability,” Ron said. “The DPV
performs numerous combat roles including, but not limited to: special operations deliv-
ery vehicle, command and control (C2) vehicle, rear area combat operation vehicle, re-
connaissance vehicle, forward observation/lasing team and artillery forward observer
vehicle. The weapons systems used with the DPV’s are: Mk-19 40mm grenade launch-
er, M2HB .50 cal. machine gun, M240 7.62mm machine gun, AT-4 Missile and M3 Carl

446
Gustav recoilless rifle. The addition of a third seat for a gunner, and additional mounts
for weapons systems has enhanced its effectiveness. That’s what we need.”

“Well hell, we should get 6,” Gary laughed, “Right after we get more Mk-19’s, more Ma-
Deuces and 6 M3 Carl Gustav recoilless rifles, whatever they are.”

“For your information Gar-Bear, the M3 Carl Gustav recoilless rifle is an 84mm system
that fires High Explosive Anti-Tank (HEAT), High Explosive (HE), High Explosive Dual
Purpose (HEDP), Smoke, Illumination, Target Practice (TP) and is made in Sweden,”
Ron explained. “The M3 Carl Gustav recoilless rifle is part of a system the military calls
the MAAWS.”

“Well, I’ll reserve my flight to Stockholm right away,” Gary said.

“The Rangers have been using it since 1990 and the SEALS use it too,” Ron snapped.

“We are retired Ronald,” Gary yelled, “R-E-T-I-R-E-D.”

“Yeah, but wouldn’t some dune buggy’s be fun to run around in?” Ron asked.

“Well, sure partner, but why do we need to arm them like an M-1117?” Gary admitted.

“We only need to install the mounts for the weapons, not the weapons,” Ron clung to
the issue.

“I’ll tell you what, you get the weapons and I’ll get the dune buggies,” Gary offered.

It wasn’t that far to the 29 Palms installation. They would have the Mk-19’s and the Ma-
Deuces, Ron figured, and probably some of the M240 7.62mm machine guns. The re-
coilless rifles might be more of a challenge. The closest Army fort was Ft. Irwin, so that
would be the place to start looking. Derek knew Ft. Irwin so Ron would ask him to go
there. No one among them knew the 29 Palms installation so they would only go there if
they couldn’t get something at Irwin. Yeah, yeah, the Palmdale Militia had been to 29
Palms, but they were in Palmdale.

The company that made the dune buggy chassis kits was in El Cajon, CA, e.g., the San
Diego area and they were still digging out from the Chinese invasion. Gary called Dick
on the radio and asked if Chris was working or hanging out. Dick told Gary that with the
money Gary had given him, Chris was devoted to building stock cars fulltime. Gary
asked Dick to ask Chris to get his butt over to the Underground City and help him out of
a terrible fix he was in. Maybe Chris figured there was money in it, who knows, but he
showed up a couple of days later.

“You see this military dune buggy?” Gary said pointing to the pictures on Global Securi-
ty.

447
“Yeah,” Chris replied.

Gary switched to the Chenowth website. “You see this dune buggy?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Chris said, “So Chenowth builds the DPV, so what?”

“I need 6 and they aren’t in business at the moment,” Gary explained. “Anyone who can
build a roll cage like you do can build those dune buggy’s from scratch.”

“Well, I suppose I could if I can figure out what size of tubing that is,” Chris said.

“What size tubing do you have the most of?” Gary asked.

“Inch and a half,” Chris replied.

“Chris, that tubing in those pictures is 1½” tubing,” Gary said.

“How do you know that?” Chris asked, “It could be 1” or 1¼”.”

“Do you have any 1” or 1¼” tubing?” Gary asked.

“No,” Chris admitted.

“Then it’s 1½” tubing,” Gary repeated.

“And you want 6?” Chris asked.

“You bet,” Gary acknowledged.

“All right, I’ll built them, but it will take a while,” Chris said.

“I’m sort of in a rush here partner,” Gary said.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Chris smiled.

Palmdale…

What Chris could do was get a hold of a friend who worked for one of the many distribu-
tors Chenowth had in the greater LA area. The friend knew where there were 8 of the
dune buggy’s all welded up and ready for final assembly, like adding the engines, etc.
All the parts were there, and they’d escaped being damaged during nuke attack and the
invasion. The friend told Chris the price for all 8 and Chris divided the total by 6 had
Dick radio the price to Gary. Chris’s fee for assembling the 6 buggy’s was exactly 2
dune buggy’s. If you were as bad a mechanic as Gary, it was more than a bargain.

The Underground City…

448
“There you go Gary,” Chris said.

“How did you get them done so fast?” Gary asked.

“Oh, let’s just say I had an incentive,” Chris explained.

“Thanks a lot, buddy, I really appreciate it,” Gary said.

“Believe me, the pleasure is all mine,” Chris smiled.

449
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 2 – Riding the Range

Derek was most fortunate at Ft. Irwin. He found everything they wanted and more. They
attached the weapons mounts to the 6 dune buggy’s and gave them the once over.

“Where do you put the saddle bags and the rifle scabbard?” Gary asked.

“What do you need those for?” Clarence asked.

“Well, I figured we’d ride the horses in the spring and fall and use the dune buggy’s in
the summer and winter,” Gary explained. “Doesn’t make any sense to have to empty
and reload the saddlebags all the time.”

How do you argue with ‘logic’ like that? It’s a lot easier to just find an extra scabbard
and throw the saddlebags over one of the pipes. These major issues resolved, the men
were ready to ride. They wanted the gunner’s seat up on top so they wouldn’t miss any-
thing.

Washington DC…

When the Democrats introduced their revised version of the Patriot Act, one Republican
joked that they could eliminate 346 pages of the 347-page bill by simply saying, “You
can’t, but we can.” Of course this was the same guy who objected to the new AWB sug-
gesting it would be 86 pages shorter if they just listed the legal firearms instead of the
illegal firearms. So, I guess you couldn’t rely on anything he said. What was he griping
about, you could still own non-repeating weapons? The single shot shotgun was the
sole exception to center fire cartridges for anyone but the military and law enforcement.

Of course everyone realized that the LEO’s needed those powerful center fire weapons.
And, the AWB also outlawed bulletproof vests because with no guns, who would need a
vest other than the military or law enforcement. Since the ATF had failed miserably for
years to control firearms, the organization became the AT and Homeland Security took
over the control of firearms. The bill didn’t specify which division of DHS should handle
the firearms registration now required for everything that discharged a projectile, so the
Secretary gave the job to FEMA.

Palmdale…

“I can’t believe they insisted on diesel engines for those dune buggy’s,” Matt said,

“I used some Japanese diesel engines, Matt,” Chris replied. “They’re pretty dependable
but Lord help them if they need parts.”

“Why?” Matt asked.

“Well the Japanese pull their engines out at around 30,000 miles and ship them to the

450
US,” Chris explained. “American parts don’t fit and if you can’t get an aftermarket part,
you have to send to Japan for the part.”

“Why didn’t you use American diesels?” Matt wanted to know.

“The Japanese engines were cheaper,” Chris explained.

The Underground City…

“I don’t know where Chris got these engines,” Ron said, “But are they are pretty fast.”

“We’d better replace them with American diesels,” Clarence suggested, “Them engines
got Japanese markings.”

“Figures,” Gary said. “Ok, find us some American diesels.”

“Are you going to register your BB gun Gary?” Clarence asked.

“Sure, right after we turn in the tanks,” Gary laughed. “Maybe I ought to send Dubya a
letter and tell him I’m not coming back. I hear that FEMA is trying to hire a few thousand
good men to enforce the guns laws. Maybe Kevin could get a job with them, Ron.”

“[unprintable] gun laws,” Ron said, “We need to saddle up and head to Washington.”

“They haven’t lifted the 50 mile travel restriction, Ron,” Clarence reminded him.

“They must have,” Ron insisted, “Chris got here and it’s a hell of a lot further than 50
miles. And those politicians seem to get to Washington ok.”

“Well Ron, there are always exceptions and exceptions to the exceptions,” Gary said.

“Why did we call this company the Freedom Riders if we can’t ride for Freedom?” Ron
slammed the table.

“It seemed like a good idea at the time,” Gary replied.

“Who says we can’t ride?” Ray injected. “You guys have all those fake ID’s,” he pointed
out, “Law Enforcement is exempt. Use the badges.”

“We’re a little long in the tooth to keep pretending to be US Marshals or whatever,” Ron
said.

“Retired LEO’s are also exempt,” Ray said, “Stamp ‘Retired’ on the ID’s and you’ve re-
stored your credibility.”

“That’s only half the battle, Ray,” Gary objected, “Assuming we overcame the minor

451
hurdle of not being able to travel, there aren’t very many of us and I’m fresh out of ideas
about what we can do about that Democratic machine they seem to have in Washing-
ton.”

“I agree with Gary, Ray,” Ron joined in, “With power not restored fully and cities all over
the country in disrepair, it wouldn’t do any good to attack the infrastructure.”

“And, Ray,” Clarence added, “The only other target obvious to me is the food supply.
We can’t attack that either. People are having enough trouble getting something to eat.”

Washington DC…

All joking aside, the US really was in trouble. The cities were being cleaned up, but
there was a lot of rebuilding to do. It wasn’t likely that most Americans would kowtow to
the new AWB. What was wrong with owning a pump shotgun, for example? And, the
Supreme Court would undoubtedly find the new USA Patriot Act to be unconstitutional
because it simply went too far. Most people just ignored the travel restrictions so long as
they could get gasoline or diesel fuel. The military refused to take part in enforcing these
new laws because they were sworn to protect and defend the Constitution, not the poli-
ticians.

Even Congress was having second thoughts. It had all seemed like the thing to do at
the time, but when one colleague suggested to another that they get in some quail hunt-
ing, they both realized that they had pump shotguns. And had there been a proper
communication systems operating, they believed that their phone lines would be
clogged. As it was, those locales where email and the phones were up and running
flooded them with phone calls and emails. Moreover, some of them realized that they
didn’t really represent anyone any more. Those nukes had essentially wiped out their
districts. They had passed a flurry of legislation, but had no one to administer the new
laws. They were like kids with a pocketful of money at an ice cream stand. They’d eaten
all of the ice cream and now had the inevitable bellyache.

The Underground City…

Damon listened patiently and then popped off, as he was prone to do. “We ought to just
shoot all of the politicians,” he’d said.

As much as Gary liked that idea, voting with a gun instead of a ballot would only lend
credence to the assertions of those who passed the new AWB. They had to do some-
thing, but what? “We can’t just sit on our butts and do nothing,” he thought. “Wait a mi-
nute, yes we can. Sort of...”

“Look guys, does anyone remember how Gandhi defeated the British and gained inde-
pendence for India? Or, how Martin Luther King overcame segregation?” Gary asked.

“I do,” Clarence said, “Passive resistance. Do I get a prize?”

452
“Get serious pal,” Gary replied, “But you’re right, passive resistance. Passive resistance
is a method of securing rights by personal suffering; it is the reverse of resistance by
arms. Passive resistance is an all-sided sword; it can be used anyhow; it blesses him
who uses it and him against whom it is used. Passive resistance is a misnomer for non-
violent resistance. Passive resistance, unlike nonviolence, has no power to change
men’s hearts. The sword of passive resistance does not require a scabbard. Jesus
Christ, Daniel, and Socrates represented the purest form of passive resistance or soul
force.”

“I like the idea of that,” Ray said, “Beats the hell out of fighting an invisible enemy, but
what do you have in mind?”

“We travel around the country and organize a passive resistance movement,” Gary
suggested.

“Won’t ‘they’ try to stop us?” Ron asked.

“If ‘they’ do, we’ll shoot ‘them’ and bury the bodies deep,” Gary smiled.

“That doesn’t sound very passive to me,” Clarence observed.

“Maybe not,” Gary said, “But we’re wanted men and we can’t do much organizing from a
jail cell or the end of a noose.”

“So we’re going to preach passive resistance and practice active resistance?” Ron
asked.

“Yeah,” Gary said, “Do you object?”

“Not at all,” Ron responded, “Just wanted to be sure what you had in mind.”

“It’s simple partner,” Gary explained. “We’ll just suggest that they obey the old laws and
ignore the new ones. And any real vocal critics we get must be people who support the
new laws, so we’ll just still their voices.”

“Oh good,” Clarence said, “For a minute there it sounded like you wanted us to kill a
bunch of people.”

“Not a bunch,” Gary said, “Just a few.”

“Hi-yo silver,” Ron joked.

“What do you mean WE white man?” Gary countered.

Actually the three old geezers were the perfect people to preach a doctrine of passive

453
resistance. They were in their 70’s and didn’t look like they could fight their way out of a
wet paper bag. Ron had that deep, commanding voice, too. Ray, Stacy, Derek and Da-
mon would accompany them in their quest. The others would stay and protect the Un-
derground City against intruders.

They needed another Airstream, but easily located one in Blythe. Damon and Derek
could sleep on the couches and everyone would otherwise have a trailer of his or her
own. They couldn’t haul around a large arsenal either, so they settled for the easily con-
cealable MP5’s. Fuel would no doubt be a problem, so they had Damon drive the front
half of one of their Chevron tankers. And, Damon and Derek were young enough to
pass as US Marshals in a pinch, so they didn’t stamp ‘Retired’ on their phony ID’s.

They would preach a very simple idea, obey the old laws and ignore the new laws. If
enough people did it, the Congress would be forced to change the laws. And, be sure
and vote Republican in the next election, regardless of your political beliefs. Some of
their ideas were clearly better than others. And, they were going to be preaching to the
choir, so their trip was actually little more than a road trip to see the country, Americans
wouldn’t buy that passive resistance crap. About the third community they hit, the boys
were convinced that they had it all wrong. So, being old and tired and prudent, they
turned around and headed back to the Underground City. Far too many Americans be-
lieved the slogan about, ‘my cold dead hands…”

“But it was such a good idea,” Gary insisted.

“May be partner,” Ron said, “For India, but these people aren’t about to let anyone take
their guns. Hell, we took guns with us, didn’t we? How are they any different than us?”

“Well, for one thing,” Gary said, “Most everyone in the US is younger than we are.”

So the order of the day was to be active, not passive, resistance. The thing was, there
weren’t too many people north of Blythe, California to resist, actively or passively. It was
mostly just desert (Mojave) and the jackrabbits didn’t carry guns. Worse, the rattle-
snakes heard them coming and slithered away. They did manage to keep Damon busy.
He was on top of the Airstreams with a can of lacquer thinner and a rag, scrubbing off
the camo paint.

“Well, are we just going to sit around here and dry up and wither away?” Ron asked.
“Or, are we going to go out and raise a little hell? Personally, I’d rather go down fighting
than sit in a rocking chair and die of old age.”

“Yeah Gary,” Clarence said, “What about it?”

“Well, there is always FEMA and the AT,” Gary said.

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Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 3 – Alcohol, Tobacco w/ Firearms

The three old men all smoked, though they didn’t drink anymore. And with cigarettes at
$60 a carton it just seemed like a good idea to go after the Bureau of Alcohol and To-
bacco, with firearms. Besides, what was wrong with running your own still? It was prac-
tically an American institution. Dig up Jack Daniels and ask him. And while we’re on the
subject, although Jack Daniels was considered by most to be bourbon, it really wasn’t,
you know. It was Tennessee sipping whiskey, although Gar-Bear rarely sipped it when
he drank it.

It sort of figured that they’d find AT agents wherever cigarettes were manufactured and
booze was bottled. Sounded like Kentucky to them. Kentucky led the nation in produc-
tion of Burley tobacco, followed by Tennessee. Only North Carolina out produced either
state and that only counted when one considered all tobaccos. Federal law allows indi-
viduals to make beer and wine for their own use without a license, but not distilled spir-
its. There are also state and local laws forbidding the manufacture of liquor, and a range
of taxes on liquor production. Federal, state, and local taxes typically make up 55 per-
cent of the price of a bottle of liquor. Under state laws, moonshining is often only a mis-
demeanor, but federal law typically imposes much stricter sentences. Someone charged
in one federal operation faced prison sentences up to 60 years.

Home-distilling has been part of American life since soon after the first colonists arrived.
Prohibition and the economic toll of the Great Depression spurred a boom in production,
which was combated first by “revenuers” from the Treasury Department, and then the
Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms. Some say the heyday of moonshine was after
Prohibition, when the demand for cheap liquor in urban centers was at its peak. “That’s
when the moonshine was really big — in the ‘50s and the ‘60s,” says Thomas Allison,
76, who pursued illegal liquor makers as an agent for the Treasury Department and
then the ATF. In the late 1960s, federal agents put more resources into the fight. They
began night infrared flights to spot illegal stills cooking in the night. By 1980, major
moonshine operations had been largely vanquished, Allison says. But as the federal
government focused its attention elsewhere the moonshine trade resurfaced.

California probably had a lot of liquor agents, too and New York state; the two states
produced a lot of wine. But, they didn’t drink, you see, so Kentucky and Tennessee
were on the agenda. And darn it, they’d forgotten to get ATF ID, but they probably had
new ID since they were only the BAT now. The federal government wasn’t all that in-
volved in the regulation of US produced tobacco products anyway; states did most of
the regulation of those finished products. The BAT only got involved at the local level
when the value of the tobacco products exceeded a certain value. Or, someone dared
to import some Russian cigarettes, ugh, and not pay the tax.

On 7/21/04 at approximately 1000 hours Western Alaska Alcohol and Narcotics Team in
conjunction with the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives, Internal Rev-
enue Service, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Department of Revenue,
Kotzebue Police Department and Kotzebue AST patrol executed a search warrant on

455
the residence of Daniel Myrick age 51, and his wife Darce Myrick age 44, both from
Kotzebue.

The search warrant was in response to the sale of illegally imported, non-taxed ciga-
rettes from Russia being sold from Kotzebue Gun and Pawn which is a pawn shop that
the Myricks’ operate out of their home. The search warrant execution resulted in the
seizure of 37 cartons of illegally imported Russian cigarettes, 37 liters of wine, 19.5 li-
ters of distilled spirits and 24 liters of malt beverage.

The cigarettes seized are valued at $1,665 and the alcohol was valued at $3,875. Both
Daniel Myrick and Darce Myrick were arrested on Misconduct Involving Unstamped
Cigarettes 1st and 2nd degree. Both individuals were transported to holding facilities in
Kotzebue to await arraignments on the above charges. Kotzebue is a local option com-
munity limiting the amount of alcohol that can be possessed by a person at one time.
The total amount of fines in this case against the Myricks for illegal cigarette trafficking
is estimated at $313,000. Seemed fair, $313,000 in fines for $5,540 in contraband. Oh,
that’s right, the seizure probably cost the government several million dollars, and they
had to get back those expenses, didn’t they?

East bound and down, loaded up and truckin’, we’re gonna do what they say can’t be
done. We’ve got a long way to go and a short time to get there. I’m east bound, just
watch ol’ “Bandit” run. They set out in the same Airstreams and they took both the
Chevron tanker and trailer. Plus the 3 5-ton trucks loaded to the ceilings with all kinds of
attention getting gadgets. And, most everyone had to go because they needed more
Airstreams to sleep in and more people to drive and…

“Where are we going to start this show?” Clarence asked.

“Let’s go to Jim Beam first,” Gary answered. “Ray seems to like that expensive bourbon
of theirs. Highway 245, Clermont, KY, here we come.”

They got the bourbon without a problem, but the AT offices were in Ashland, Bardstown,
Bowling Green, Lexington, London, Louisville and Owensville. And Tennessee only had
2 locations, Knoxville and Nashville. They took the atlas and drew up a big circular route
and then decided that it would be too obvious. Alphabetical order wasn’t any better, they
assumed, so they wrote the names of all the BAT offices in the area on slips of paper
and drew them from a hat.

And since it was once referred to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco. Firearms and Explo-
sives, they felt free to use both firearms and explosives to send their message to the
people really responsible for the high price of cigarettes, the Congress. It seems that
Congress saw the states taxing the living dickens outs of cigarettes purportedly to fund
anti-smoking costs (BS) but were raking in the big bucks. Since the federal tax attached
first, and is paid by the manufacturers as an excise tax to be passed on, it only made
sense to triple the tax. No one could argue taxation without representation either, the bill
started in the House of Representatives.

456
°

Bowling Green was the first name out of the hat. It was located in southern Kentucky,
north of Nashville, TN. The plan was moderately simple, keep a watch on the BAT office
and when they had enough info, work out an attack scenario based on those observa-
tions. The agent in charge of the office was a married man whose children were grown
and gone. He seemed to be just your average type Joe, but he had a reputation for
strictly enforcing the laws. His staff must have been personally selected. About half of
them were single men but had a bearing about them that implied they were a nasty
bunch. This was satellite office charged with industrial operations, and therefore, the
perfect first target. But, they couldn’t decide who, or what to hit. In the past, their targets
had all been essentially faceless, just names. Well, George was married, but they hadn’t
killed him. And Teresa Heinz had married into the Heinz family and her first husband of,
what was it 30 years, had been her one true love. Nelson they knew little about and
cared less. But, they’d finally screwed up and got to know their potential targets.

Ah yes, but there was still the office, wasn’t there and it had regular business hours like
any business office. They wouldn’t mind taking out the single guys, but they must have
had mothers and fathers and maybe brothers and sisters. And, after the federal building
in LA, they had pretty much tried to avoid killing people. They guessed that was what
the C-4 was for, and if properly used, they could just take out the AT office. They had
the schedule down pat for the security officers at the building housing the AT office, so it
was just a matter of breaking in at the appropriate moment, planting the explosives and
bugging out. Didn’t your Mama ever tell you that life wasn’t simple?

Derek and Ray waited until the guard left to make his rounds. They broke into the build-
ing by slapping some duct tape on the glass door and breaking out the glass. They hur-
ried to the AT office and broke in, tossed the backpack containing the explosives into
the office and headed back the way they came. But, it took longer than they thought and
just as they were exiting the same front door, the guard returned. He pulled his service
pistol and fired off a volley of rounds.

“I’m hit,” Derek gasped.

“How bad is it?” Ray asked, grabbing Derek and pushing him into the pickup.

“Just get out of here before that guard shoots again or the bomb blows,” Derek said
through gritted teeth.

“Where are you hit?” Ray asked, starting the motor and taking off with squealing tires
and a cloud of exhaust.

“Right side, in my back,” Derek groaned.

“Hang in there kid, it’s only a couple of miles to the trailer park,” Ray encouraged Derek.

457
Derek passed out, either from the pain or blood loss. They were less than ½ mile from
the trailer park, so Ray just goosed it a little and hurried to the trailers. He pulled Derek
out and shouted for someone to help him. The cousins came out and helped carry
Derek to Harry and Janet’s trailer. Janet was the paramedic, you may recall.

“Get Sammy,” Janet said. “I sure wish Jennifer was here, this is a fairly serious wound.”

“I don’t know,” Sammy said after examining the wound, “I sure wish Jennifer was here.
I’ve assisted in a lot of operations on wounds like this, but I’ve never actually done one.”

“Ladies, we don’t have much choice here,” Gary said, “They’ll arrest Derek for sure if we
take him to a hospital. We have plasma and all kinds of medical supplies, do you think
you can handle it?”

“Janet?” Sammy asked.

“I’m game if you are. Someone get Mary to help us,” Janet said.

The three women worked on the wound. It looked worse than it was, actually, but Derek
wouldn’t be attending any dances for a while. The bullet had barely missed the liver and
other vital organs. Sammy opened a small incision, clamped off the bleeders, debrided
the wound and began to make the repairs to the blood vessels as she’d seen the doc-
tors do hundreds of times before.

With the vessels repaired, she began to stitch her way out using catgut suture material
and leaving in a drainage tube. The surface layer was closed with black silk. They rolled
Derek over and started on the exit wound. It wasn’t much larger, probably an FMJ
round. Sammy debrided the wound and again worked her way out, closing as she went.
Then, Mary hung a bag of antibiotics and they bandaged both wounds.

“I think he’ll be ok if those stitches in those blood vessels hold,” Sammy said.

“How is he?” Gary asked.

“I’ve seen a lot worse,” Janet said, “And they made it. But, if we’re going to be running
risks like this, you’re going to have to get someone to watch the kids and have Ryan
and Jennifer join us.”

“Then, we’ll just lay low here and send for them,” Gary said. “I’ll talk to Sharon about
this.”

They finally decided that Mary, the LPN, and her husband, Sam, would return to the
Underground City and send Ryan and Jennifer back, together with more medical sup-
plies. During the week that it would take to return to California and get Ryan and Jen-
nifer to the Midwest, they would move to Nashville instead of staying in Bowling Green.

458
They would be at the Nashville KOA, 2626 Music Valley Drive, Nashville, TN. Sam and
Mary left the next morning for California.

“How are you doing son?” Gary asked.

“It doesn’t hurt too badly, Dad,” Derek said.

“That’s probably the morphine,” Gary said. “We’ve leaving shortly to go to Nashville.
We’ll be as careful as we can and Janet and Sammy will be here with you if you need
anything. Mary is in the other room, do you want to see her?”

“Yeah, she’s probably worried sick,” Derek said.

“Well next time duck,” Gary kidded.

“Next time?” Derek groaned. “Once is enough.”

They found the KOA. It was located northeast of Nashville on state 155. It didn’t seem
to have too many guests; apparently a lot of people were taking the government serious
on the travel restrictions. Damon flashed the badge and came up with some sort of ex-
cuse to explain their presence. He never did tell them what he’d said to convince the
operator of the campground that they were legitimate. Who knows, maybe the guy had
just heard about the explosion in Bowling Green, KY and was a patriot. No one, includ-
ing the guard, was killed in the explosion according to the radio. The office was a total
loss and the government was looking for two men, one possibly wounded. That cinched
it for them; using a hospital was out of the question.

“What went wrong Ray,” Gary asked.

“Nothing other than we had a little trouble finding the right office,” Ray said. “We were in
and out, but maybe it took longer than I thought or maybe the guard just came back ear-
ly.”

“Stuff happens, I suppose,” Gary said. “Ronald, we’re going to have to get one hell of a
lot more information about this Nashville office before we blow it up.”

“We have all the time in the world Gar-Bear,” Ron assured him.

“Gary, I’m really sorry about Derek,” Ray said.

“Ray there’s nothing to be sorry about,” Gary assured him. “We just need to have better
intelligence next time. We’ll just sit it out for a few days and let things cool down. Be-
sides, I don’t believe it would be prudent to even start Intel ops until Ryan and Jennifer
get here.”

“How badly is he hurt?” Clarence asked

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“Partner, I think that’s what they call a flesh wound in the movies, but an inch closer to
his belly button might have killed him,” Gary replied. “We’ve gone a long time without
anyone getting hurt. I guess we were just lucky.”

“That’s an understatement,” Ray said. “All the crap you boys pulled since I joined up
should have gotten a dozen people killed.”

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 4 – A Time to Heal & Learn

“How are you feeling today Derek?” Gary asked.

“It hurts, but I’ll be ok,” Derek replied.

“What’s it feel like to get shot?” Gary asked.

“You got shot,” Derek said.

“No, I got hit in the head by a rock, that’s not the same thing,” Gary reminded Derek.

“I don’t know how to explain it then,” Derek shook his head. “At first I didn’t feel anything
and then it began to burn like fire. I knew I was hit, it almost spun me completely
around, but I don’t know what to say. Just don’t try to find out for yourself, ok?”

“I think I could live with that piece of advice, son,” Gary laughed at his unintended irony.

“When are we going to do the next operation?” Derek asked.

“You’re going to sit it out until you’re healed,” Gary admonished Derek. “We’re going to
sit tight until Ryan and Jennifer get here. Then, we’re going to be extra careful scoping
this next target out.”

“It’s a long way from here,” Derek said, “It’s at 5300 Maryland Way, Brentwood, TN.
That’s south of town. It must be 20 miles from here.”

“Do you happen to have the office number and phone number too?” Gary asked.

“It’s Suite 200,” Derek said, “But I can’t remember the phone number.”

“Huh, not are you not only not bulletproof, you’ve got a memory problem. You’re a chip
off the old block, kid,” Gary smiled.

“How’s he doing today, Gary,” Clarence asked.

“He’s ok. It’s only a flesh wound. Go visit him. He might appreciate the company,” Gary
suggested.

“You ask him where the AT office is?” Ron asked.

“He volunteered,” Gary replied. “Say’s it’s on the other side of Nashville about 20 miles
from here.”

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“When we go to that building, we’d better check the office location, too” Ron suggested.

“Suite 200, partner,” Gary said, “ought to be easy enough for us to find.

“We didn’t expect you for 2 more days, Ryan,” Gary said, “What did you do, drive
straight through?”

“Mary said that Derek might need some of the medical supplies that you didn’t have,”
Ryan explained, “So we only stopped one night.”

“Have any trouble?” Gary asked.

“Got some strange looks and got tailed a couple of times by the cops,” Ryan answered.
“Showed them the badge and told them I was transporting a doctor to treat a patient.
Never actually had to say I was a Marshal so I didn’t really lie to their faces. I’m not a
very good liar.”

“That’s ok Ryan,” Gary smiled, “The three of us make up for it.”

“How’s Derek?” Ryan asked.

“That’s what Jennifer is here to find out,” Gary responded, “But it appears to be only a
flesh wound.”

“Those really hurt sometimes,” Ryan suggested.

“He been on morphine, so he hasn’t been in any pain,” Gary related.

“I’m sure that Jennifer will put a stop to that,” Ryan said, “It doesn’t do any good after a
while without increasing the dosage.”

“I know that from 1st hand experience,” Gary admitted, “But, he should be well enough
by now to get off it anyway.”

“Well,” Jennifer said when she came out a few minutes later, “He’s going to be fine.
Sammy did a first rate job. Blood pressure is normal, no fever and the wounds look
good. The drainage is starting to clear, so I’ll pull the drain tube in a day or so. You real-
ly didn’t need me here, but if you men are going to go around getting yourselves shot
up, I’m glad that I am.”

“Hopefully, it was a fluke,” Gary replied. “But I feel better having you here. We’ve held
off doing anything until we had a doctor available.”

“I’ll take Derek’s place for now,” Ryan offered.

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“Thanks Ryan, but at the moment, all we’re going to do is gather Intel,” Gary acknowl-
edged. “We’ve sort of lost the taste for blood. We managed to take out that building in
Bowling Green without hurting anyone.”

“Except Derek,” Jennifer reminded him.

“Like I said, that was a fluke. It could have been poor Intel or maybe the guard just fin-
ished up his rounds early. Either way, we’re going to have a lot better Intel before our
next strike.”

“I certainly hope so,” Jennifer said, “A half inch further in and he might not have made
it.”

“Don’t I know,” Gary agreed.

When they found the office in Brentwood, the first thing they did was to go to the office
and pick up some of the new brochures on the new AWB. The AT was no longer re-
sponsible, but they still distributed the brochures, perhaps out of habit. FEMA was still
struggling to get organized. But then there was a lot wrong with the government, begin-
ning with the Department of Homeland Security. Not one ATF agent left the AT when
the Firearms went under control of FEMA.

And, until they started to cut the Bureau, none of them intended to either. That bombing
up in Bowling Green didn’t make a lot of sense, either. When they handled firearms,
someone was always criticizing the Bureau, but they weren’t responsible for firearms
anymore. It was nice that those three old guys were respectful of the new law and got
the pamphlets about the new AWB. They probably had shotguns or something to turn
in. Oh, most certainly, Gary, Ron and Clarence couldn’t wait to give FEMA their guns.
Or, at least the parts that came out when they pulled the triggers. But first, they had to
get cigarettes down to a more reasonable $30 per carton.

Gary remembered a poster that used to be posted in the state stores in Iowa years be-
fore. A bottle of liquor that cost the state $1.92 retailed for $5. No wonder the state had
been in the liquor business. And, the generic cigarettes that were identical to Marlboro’s
were $10 less per carton in 2004 and still only $10 less per carton. Someone was get-
ting rich off their bad habits.

“It looks to me like it’s straight in and out,” Clarence said. “All we have to do is figure out
the guard schedule and we’re good to go.”

“I don’t know,” Gary replied, “I want a lot more information before we hit.”

“What do you need to know besides the guard schedule?” Ron asked.

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“Do the police patrol regularly? If so, when? Are there people watching the building at
nights that we’re not aware of? What’s the response time of the police if they have an
alarm system and it’s set off? Shall I go on?” Gary asked.

“You’re getting cautious in your old age,” Ron allowed.

“Wasn’t your kid that got shot Ronald and I don’t want anyone else shot either,” Gary
retorted strongly.

“We’ll just send Ray and Ryan back tonight to check out the nighttime activities and
note the police schedule,” Gary said. “We can find out the other things by throwing a
rock through a window.”

“Won’t that alert them?” Clarence asked.

“They may just think that someone doesn’t know that Firearms are FEMA now,” Gary
replied. “Either way, we’ll know about the alarm system.”

“Did you have Ryan and Jennifer bring the vests?” Ron asked.

“I thought we had them on one of those trucks Ron, really,” Gary explained. “But yes,
Ryan brought them.”

“Here’s what I want the two of you to do,” Gary explained to Ray and Ryan. “Use the
night vision stuff and check the place out closely from a distance. If it’s clear, move in
for a closer look. Note all police patrols and the times they pass by the building. See if
they have a night guard and what his schedule is. Around 3am, toss a rock through a
window and layback someplace safe and watch. You’d better go armed for bear and be
sure to wear the vests, with the plates. This is a recon mission guys, so don’t take any
unnecessary chances.”

“How long are we going to go down there and check on the cops before we strike?” Ray
asked.

“I’m not sure Ray, a week, maybe 10 days,” Gary answered.

“Aren’t you being overly cautious?” Ray asked.

“Would you feel the same way if it had been you that had gotten shot instead of Derek?”
Gary asked.

“Ten days is good,” Ray agreed.

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Ray and Ryan arrived after dark and started out ½ mile from the building. They didn’t
see anything to be alarmed about and moved to a ¼ mile away. Apparently there were
no extra guards. A police cruiser went by and Ray noted the time: 9:27. They moved
across the street from the building and saw a guard sitting at a table drinking something
from a thermos and reading a paper. At 10:00 he put down the paper, picked up a time
clock and left. He was back at 10:12.

At 10:32, a patrol car went by again and Ray added that to his notes. At 11:01, the
guard repeated his routine. Give or take 2 or 3 minutes that went on until 3am. Five
minutes after the guard left, Ryan tossed a rock through a window and beat a hasty re-
treat. The guard showed up in 3 minutes flat. A patrol car did not appear until the regu-
lar time, approximately 3:30. However, the car did stop and talk with the guard. Appar-
ently he had been talking to them when he’d made that phone call. A short time later a
service vehicle showed up and replaced the window. The police did not depart until the
building was secure. This left an open question. How long did it take the police to re-
spond if the guard put in an emergency call?

“So tonight, we need to get the guard to summon the cops in a hurry. How about I toss
a hand grenade near the front of the building?” Ray suggested.

“If you think it’s safe, go for it,” Gary agreed with Ron and Clarence nodding their heads
in agreement. “However, tomorrow night, Ryan and you start all over from a ½ mile out,
Ray. They might bring in a SWAT Team or something if you do the grenade tonight.”

“Ok Gary, I suppose it won’t hurt to be cautious,” Ray agreed.

That night was a repetition of the night before. The cops came by around on the half
hour and the guard made his rounds on the hour. At 3:15, after the guard had returned,
Ray rolled a MK3A2 hand grenade towards the front door. The MK3A2 offensive hand
grenade, commonly referred to as the concussion grenade, is designed to produce cas-
ualties during close combat while minimizing danger to friendly personnel. The grenade
is also used for concussion effects in enclosed areas, for blasting, or for demolition
tasks. The shock waves (overpressure) produced by this grenade when used in en-
closed areas are greater than those produced by the fragmentation grenade. It is, there-
fore, very effective against enemy soldiers located in bunkers, buildings, and fortified
areas.

It went off with one hell of a bang, cracking some of the windows. The guard pulled the
phone down to the floor and dialed. 7 minutes later, a half-dozen squad cars pulled in
code 3. They did a search of the area and two of the cars remained until the glass was
replaced around dawn.

“We won’t have a lot of time if the cops get called,” Ray reported. “It only took them 7
minutes to respond.”

“Check it out tonight and be very careful, Ray,” Gary replied. “Like I said, check for a

465
SWAT Team or any extra guards.”

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 5 – 2 Down and 1 To Go

That night Ryan and Ray started checking on the office from ½ mile away. Ray thought
he spotted something but wasn’t sure. They sat tight. The police patrols were the same,
on the half hour, but they seemed to slow each time they passed the office building
where the AT office was. Just before 11pm, a black van pulled up near the building and
6 men got out. They entered the building across the street, but seemed to leave about
10 minutes later. Ray told Ryan to sit tight. Around 3:15, Ray finally caught a guy on the
roof that had stood up and scanned the area with his own night vision binoculars. They
waited until the guy settled back down and cautiously departed the area.

“You were right Gary,” Ray said. “They had a Team of some kind on the roof across the
street. Probably SWAT, they were all dressed in black.”

“Check it out again tonight from the same distance, Ray,” Gary suggested. “If they are
there, call it a night and come back.”

That night, the only difference was that the SWAT Team arrived about 5 minutes earlier.
They repeated the process for 7 nights until a SWAT Truck didn’t appear at 11:00. Err-
ing on the side of caution, Ray and Ryan sat tight and left at midnight. The next night,
there was no SWAT Truck again and they decided to move in to a ¼ mile out.

They didn’t see anything, but favoring caution, left and returned to the trailer park
around 1:00. The following night, they repeated the routine at ½ mile and ¼ mile and
eventually moved to within sight of the building. They kept a sharp lookout for anyone in
the area who was out of place, but saw no one. The guard was still doing his on the
hour routine and the patrol cars came by on the half hour. Ryan pointed out that they
weren’t slowing as they had before. Ray decided that it wouldn’t get any better than this
and around 4:00 returned to the trailer park.

“If we’re going to do this thing, I say we do it tonight,” Ray proposed.

“How sure are you that SWAT won’t be back?” Gary asked.

“No way I can guarantee that Gary,” Ray said, “But what reason would they have to
come back? There hasn’t been any more trouble at the building and they probably just
hung it up. I would have after a week.”

“Ok. We’ll use tape, like before, but I think a glass cutter might be quieter than breaking
the window,” Gary said. “However, before we do this, I want one of you to actually visit
that office so you know exactly where it is located. You realized that at best you have
maybe an 8-minute window. And, if that guard hears anything, he will probably just dial
911.”

467
“I guess that means we have about a 6 minute window then,” Ray replied. “The cops
took 7 minutes to get there and we need some time to clear the building.”

“Fine, 6 minutes, Ray,” Gary agreed. “And Ray, if the guard gets wind of you being in
the building, shoot him, please.”

“Ok, I agree Gary, if we see the guard, he’s history,” Ray said.

“How big a bomb are we going to use?” Gary asked.

“Well, that depends on the office doesn’t it?” Ray replied. “Since I’ll be making the
bomb, I’ll check out the office. Five pounds of C-4 or less, I’d imagine.”

Ray and Ryan got some sleep and got up around noon to drive down to the AT office.
Ryan waited in the pickup while Ray went upstairs and picked up a FEMA brochure on
the AWB. He took a quick glance around when he entered and that was all he needed.
To look around a second time might attract attention. He went down and got in the
pickup and Ryan and he left. Ray should have taken that second glance; he missed the
explosives detector that the AT had installed. They had, however, put in an alarm on the
door and he did notice that.

“We’re going to use 5 pounds,” Ray said. “It might be a little heavy handed, but not so
much that it will make a big difference.”

“3am?” Gary asked.

“Works for me,” Ray said.

That night, at 2:55am Ryan and Ray pulled their pickup alongside the building and left
the motor running. They got out of the vehicle and moved near the door. When the
guard got up to do his rounds at 3:02, they waited 1 minute and slapped the tape on.
The glasscutter worked fine, it was new, and they removed a circle from the bottom
panel of the door about 2’ across. Ray led the way and Ryan held back a few feet to
cover his rear. Ray shoved a pry bar into the AT door and tossed in the backpack with
the 5 pounds of C-4, immediately setting off the explosives detector. The detector was a
local system, intended only to alert the AT and/or the building guard. They had missed
one other thing too, but it was too late now.

When the alarm went off, the guard reached for the police walkie-talkie on his belt and
reported that he had an explosives alarm activation in the AT office. The dispatcher im-
mediately put out a code 3 broadcast and notified the bomb squad. The guard had done
his job and he was no fool, he raced to the front door and just about had the door un-
locked when Ray and Ryan came down the stairs and around the corner. Ray didn’t
hesitate, he swung up the MP5/10SD6 and let loose with a volley. The guard had heard
them coming down the stairs and he ducked. And, he didn’t waste time reaching for that
service pistol either; he went out the door and made a quick left turn, running as fast as

468
his legs would carry him. Ray and Ryan ran out the blasted away door and made a right
turn and jumped in the idling pickup. They were less than a block south of the building
when the first cruiser pulled in. Ray had noted that the police came from the east and
west the first time and he was playing a hunch.

The police stayed away from the building waiting for the bomb squad to show up. The
bomb only had a 5 minute timer and the AT office went up well before the bomb squad
arrived. Meanwhile, Ryan and Ray made their way back to the trailer park. That had
been too close. It was all in the details and two details had almost cost them big time
and something they couldn’t have accounted for had saved their butts. Ray had missed
the explosives detector and they had both missed the police walkie-talkie. Only the fact
that the guard wasn’t about to stay in a building after the detector went off had saved
their butts. That and the fact that he’d turned left and they’d turned right. The second
building was down and no one was hurt. However it had been a close one and they now
knew changes that needed to be made before they went for building number 3.

“Son of a Beach,” Gary said. “How did you miss that explosives detector? And the po-
lice radio?”

“I didn’t have that long to look around guys,” Ray explained. “Next time, you are going to
have to send someone in who has an excuse to look around a little longer. As far as the
radio goes, we simply missed it. But we won’t make that mistake again. Overall, this
plan was a success. All we have to do is a little fine tuning and the next one will go off
without a hitch.”

“Fair enough, I guess,” Gary agreed, “But its mistakes that get people killed and I do not
want anyone killed on our side or their side, if we can help it. The guards are fair game
IF the situation demands it, but that’s the beginning and end of it. No one on our side is
fair game. I’d rather pass on a target than get any of our people killed. And if the only
way we can take down a target is to absolutely kill someone, we’ll just pass on that tar-
get. The thing about luck is that it eventually runs out. The next target is Louisville and it
could be our hardest target yet. We’ll hang around for a couple of days and then begin
taking off one or two at a time. Everyone will meet up at the KOA at 900 Marriott Dr,
Clarksville, IN. It’s called the Louisville Metro KOA and it’s less than 4 miles from our
next target. When everyone gets there, just sit tight and enjoy the sights.

“You know, the BAT still has all of those agents they had when they were the BATFE,”
Gary continued. “I don’t know what kind of opinion you might have of them and I don’t
care. But people, they are real Law Enforcement Officers; don’t kid yourself about that.
They got heavy handed sometimes, and I’d be the first one to point that out. But they
aren’t amateurs. That explosives detector should prove that to you if nothing else. Do
not take them lightly, especially since we’ve taken down 2 offices. Remember, this is all
about getting the federal government to lower the price of cigarettes, nothing more and
nothing less.

469
°

Moving by ones and twos, it took them some time to reassemble in Louisville. They
mostly moved in ones and they didn’t head straight to Louisville. It was nearly a month
later before they were ready to even consider the next operation. The news media was
making much ado over the two bombings and had cast dispersions on nearly every
group in the country, even the Palmdale Militia. And, the three old geezers had heard
their names mentioned several times. And remember TV was back on the air and they
had those mug shots from Flagstaff. The old men stayed in their trailers and let some-
one else drive. They, of course, traveled as a threesome; no one was breaking up this
team.

They couldn’t put in an appearance at the Louisville AT office, so they did the next best
thing; they sent their wives. The story was that the husband one of the women had died
and they wanted information about what they were allowed to keep and what they
weren’t allowed to keep. They were a sympatric group and the AT agents gave them
brochures and slowly and carefully explained everything them. These women must not
know diddly about guns one of the agents assumed, they kept asking the same ques-
tions again and again. But finally, the women seemed to understand and assured the
agent helping them that they would turn in that nasty old Winchester model 1886 car-
bine. They even allowed the agent to see their driver’s licenses and write down their
names.

All the while, the miniature video cam that looked like a broach panned the room and
the wires running down the inside of Linda’s coat and to the radio which sent the signal
to the recorder in her oversized purse. When the ladies got back Linda told Ronald that
was the first and last time for that. She had to act like she didn’t know the difference be-
tween a rifle and a shotgun and it was just plain demeaning. And, Sharon was more an-
gry than Linda. She knew as much about Gary’s old gun collection as Gary did and
found it very difficult not to properly describe a lever action rifle. She kept saying thingy
and the agent kept saying lever and he’d made her feel positively dumb.

Ray pointed out the explosives detector on the video and the alarm system. This office
would be a tough nut to crack he said. They probably learned from the Nashville inci-
dent too and the explosives detector no doubt sent a silent alarm to the police station. A
police station he pointed out that was only about 4 minutes away from the office. He
was willing to give it a go, he said, but this was the last one.

And, they were going to have to do it on a federal holiday when the building was certain
to be empty. That also presented a problem he said. The next federal holiday, Colum-
bus Day, was not that far off and they might be expecting something on a federal holi-
day. It would be better he said to wait for the following federal holiday, Veteran’s Day or
the one after, Thanksgiving. Veteran’s Day was Friday, November 11, 2011 and
Thanksgiving was Thursday, November 24, 2011.

470
It was decided to skip Columbus Day, and see what the feds did. Then, if they saw the
same activity on or around Veteran’s Day they skip to Thanksgiving. If Thanksgiving
was also subject to great federal attention, they’d just skip the whole thing, no one
wanted to make the attack on the federal holiday after that, Christmas Day. That would
most surely back fire and even Thanksgiving posed that risk. They’d play that by ear if it
got that far. Meanwhile Ryan and Ray were to resume the surveillance activities just like
they’d used in Nashville. Derek was healing nicely and depending upon when the attack
was made, he might be one of the participants. However it went, it was time to take a
vacation and then shift their activities to FEMA who was finally starting to get their act
together. That was, of course, unless Congress actually approved the proposed chang-
es to the AWB that were currently being hotly debated. Under those revisions, the AWB
would revert to the original version passed in 1994. It wasn’t perfect, but they could live
with it.

And about that pass on Christmas, an explosion might be perfect if they did it during the
1812 Overture, but somehow it just didn’t go with “Oh Holy Night”. Gary was old school
and when he was in High School they still did Religious Christmas Productions every
Christmas at the High School with real religious music. He was one of the 3 Kings and
was myrrh; Myrrh is mine; it’s bitter perfume; Breathes a life of gathering gloom; Sorrow-
ing, sighing, bleeding, dying, Sealed in the stone cold tomb. That was in the 1950’s you
know. But now, since the courts had seemed to have made religion a sin and banned it
from schools… Anyway, old Gar-Bear wasn’t about to mess up the Holy Night. He might
be a stone cold killer of crooked politicians, but in his heart, he was a Christian. I know, I
know, it’s an oxymoron, and St. Peter probably will point downward, but…

Security was tighter than a tick on a hound dog on Columbus Day, just as expected.
And Veteran’s Day wasn’t much better. They had all of their information and they even
had a plan, but they needed the opportunity. It finally came at Thanksgiving. It came
with really mixed emotions too. But there was no security evident and they had checked
closely. And, they weren’t going to break into the building and risk anyone’s life. Not
theirs and not the poor guard who had to work on Thanksgiving. They had just what
they needed with them, but it would take 5 of them this time. It was going to be Derek
and the 4 cousins and Derek was the driver.

At 2:30am on Thanksgiving morning, the 5 of them drove to the building across the
street from the AT office. They got out of the truck, removed their solution from the back
of the truck and shouldered the weapons. On the count of 3, the cousins discharged the
AT-4 rockets through the windows of the AT office. They slid back into the pickup and
were 4 blocks away before the police even began to respond. By the time they arrived
at the KOA, the police were at the building and the fire department was on the way.
They slipped off their clothes and went to bed. This project was over.

471
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 6 – Home For The Holidays

The day after Thanksgiving was still the day that people started the Christmas shop-
ping, so they took advantage of all of the local traffic and slipped out of Louisville. They
made their ways back to the Underground City and were home by December 1st.

“Sure would be nice to be back in Palmdale for the holidays,” Clarence observed.

“Even the ranch would be better than this mine,” Ron agreed.

“Guys, the old saying is that home is where the heart is,” Gary reminded them. “We’re
together and among friends.”

“Congress didn’t get that AWB change passed before they went home for the holidays,”
Clarence reminded Gary. “So come the New Year are you planning on dealing with
those FEMA people?”

“Oh yeah,” Gary smiled. “This last attack on the AT was smooth as silk, I should have
thought of those AT-4s before.”

Washington DC…

“I’m just saying that if you can’t get that Firearms Division organized by January 1, I am
going back to Congress and ask them to change the law and put Firearms back with Al-
cohol and Tobacco, Mr. Secretary,” the President explained, exhausted with the debate.

“Mr. President, give me a break,” the DHS Secretary protested, “It’s those ATF agents
all refusing to transfer to FEMA that’s part of the problem. And let’s face it, FEMA is the
last bastion for liberals in the country and what do liberals know about guns?”

“Exactly my point Mr. Secretary,” the President continued. “It’s an Assault Weapons
Ban, not a slingshot ban or a bow and arrow ban. These people of yours are taking eve-
rything too literally. Beside, do you really need 1,400 pages of regulations to implement
this ban?”

“I suppose not, but my people just sort of got on a roll and, well, you know,” the Secre-
tary tried to explain.

“And, what about those 3 attacks on the AT offices?” the President asked.

“That’s the responsibility of the FBI,” the DHS Secretary protested.

“But my people tell me that they used AT-4 rockets in that last attack,” the President
said, “And those AT-4s are your responsibility. I think I’ve heard enough. I’m going to
issue an Executive Order right now. Forget January 1st. I’m going to transfer Firearms
back to the AT temporarily and ask Congress to change the law immediately. I think that

472
you and your people are just in over your heads on this one.”

“Yes Mr. President,” the Secretary regrettably accepted the pronouncement.

“And by the way,” the President said, “That fricking bureau of incompetents tells me that
those attacks had to do with the price of cigarettes, and nothing to do with the gun laws.
They also tell me that their prime suspects are those three old geezers from California.
The Director told me that they were the only people in the country crazy enough and
wily enough to be able to pull something like this off.”

“You can always blame that on Nelson, Mr. President,” the DHS Security suggested,
“He’s the one who gave them all of those munitions.”

“They probably used them to shoot down Air Force One,” President Costello admitted.

“Had to be their people Mr. President, they were in jail at the time,” the Secretary point-
ed out.

“All I know is that they’ve fallen off the face of the earth,” Costello said, “These guys
have really gone underground.”

Even Presidents get some things right.

The Underground City…the Day after Christmas…

“Since the President transferred Firearms back to AT and they’re the ATF again, are we
going after FEMA or the ATF?” Ron asked.

“Well, ATF is on full alert Ronald,” Gary observed, “We’d better lay off them for a while,
don’t you think?”

“What I think,” Clarence said,” It that this President Costello is a cheap SOB. He’s only
offering a $10 million reward for us. But, that mug shot of me is right handsome,
wouldn’t you all agree?”

“I think that he knows where we are,” Ron scoffed. “You heard him Gary, he said we’d
really gone underground.”

“I think,” Gary paused for effect, “That it was just a figure of speech Ronald. We used
the alias’s to form the corporation and there’s nothing to connect us to this mine.”

“But Gary,” Clarence said, “Doesn’t the name Freedom Rider’s Inc. sort of waves a red
flag saying here we are, come and get us?”

473
“So pick a new name and put in a dba,” Gary said, “We can be Pacifist’s Inc. for all I
care. ‘What’s in a name?’ Shakespeare’s Juliet asked. That which we call a rose by any
other word would smell as sweet. Do whatever you want.”

“Still showing off, huh?” Ron said, “I wish my Dad could have paid for me to get a Mas-
ter’s Degree and go to law school.”

“I quit law school Ronald,” Gary reminded. “Gave me ulcers and made me hate attor-
neys.”

“We’re off the subject here,” Ron said. “Are we going after FEMA or the ATF?”

“Nope,” Gary replied. “FEMA is just a puppet; we’re going after the puppet master, the
Department of Homeland Security. We’ll just see how secure our homeland is. But first
we have to get organized guys. We can’t get halfway across the country and realize we
forgot the vests or left the AT-4s in California. Start making a list of what you think we
need to take with us.”

“What’s with Gary and all these lists?” Clarence asked Ron later.

“Gar-Bear is obsessive-compulsive, and that’s just one of the symptoms,” Ron laughed.

Al Capone started it. Wesley Clark reminded us. Gar-Bear was going to make sure that
Valentine’s Day would be a Holiday that everyone remembered. On the 7th anniversary
of Clark’s aborted coup, the Secretary of Homeland Security would wish he were the
Secretary of the Interior. There was the Homeland Security National Center for Food
Protection and Defense up in Minnesota, the National Center for Foreign Animal and
Zoonotic Disease Defense down in Texas and the Homeland Security Center for Risk
and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events at the University of Southern California. It
would mean dividing their forces, but, if the University of Minnesota, Texas A&M and
USC wanted to get in bed with the government; they had no one to blame but them-
selves. And, what business did Universities have doing government business anyway?
The University of California sure did screw up handling Lawrence Livermore Laboratory
and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

“Ronald you take Texas, Clarence can take California and I’m going to Minnesota,”
Gary outlined. “Find those Homeland Security facilities and blow them up.”

“When are we going to do this?” Clarence asked.

“Valentine’s Day,” Gary responded. “Al Capone and Wesley Clark were amateurs com-
pared to what I have in mind.”

“But they’re just Universities,” Ron protested.

474
“On the government payroll,” Gary countered. “But, we’ll do it at night to try and keep
the casualties down. Anyway, we have our assignments. Let’s get these locations
scouted out and blow them up.”

Washington DC…

When Congress returned from recess, they moved the Firearms control back to the AT
and finally passed a reasonable bill on Assault Weapons, returning to the original law
but without the sunset clauses. And they cut the federal tax on cigarettes by ⅓ and the
taxes on alcohol by ⅔. The President reluctantly signed both pieces of legislation. He
claimed that he didn’t know how the federal government was going to manage and rec-
ommended that Congress raise the Estate Tax to 90% with no exemptions.

The good news was that the cities devastated by the Chinese attack were mostly re-
built. And, the Muslims hadn’t attacked, so obviously the Department of Homeland Se-
curity and the USA Patriot Act were doing what they were intended to do. Uh, Mr. Presi-
dent, the war with the Muslims has been going on since the Crusades. Maybe they’re
just reorganizing or something. Hadn’t you better replace all those ships we lost and
build up the Army to a full 15 Divisions again? We only have 7 Divisions left since that
Chinese thing and a lot of those ships need to be serviced. Peace dividends are more
like deferred taxes. They come back to haunt you!

Texas…

Ronald finally figured out that the DHS operation was part of the College of Veterinary
Medicine. He tracked down the specific offices involved in the DHS project and had
them checked out. There wasn’t any security whatsoever beyond the normal campus
security. They could hit the College Station offices with impunity and late at night, avoid
casualties entirely. Well, the campus cops might take a hit, but if they did it right, maybe
no one would get hurt. He simply didn’t have enough people to hit all the locations at
once. The 4 cousins were with him, but there were 8 offices to knock out. Even if he
participated, and he was a little old for that sort of thing, they’d have to either limit the
numbers of offices they hit with the rockets or double up.

“Why don’t we just plant bombs in four of the offices and use rockets on the other four?”
Jim asked. “This is a college for crying out loud. Everyone leaves backpacks lying
around all of the time.”

“But what if someone steals the backpacks?” Ron asked.

“We can put them in lockers or something,” Jim suggested.

475
“Ok, we’ll do it that way Jim,” Ron said. “Now remember, Gar-Bear wanted this thing to
go down right at 4am. He’s going to take out the University of Minnesota offices at the
same time and Clarence is going to hit USC at 2am Pacific. If the blasts aren’t coordi-
nated, DHS might think they are isolated incidents.”

“Ok, 4am Ron,” Jim said, “We wouldn’t dare do it any later; there would be too many
students around.”

Minneapolis…

Fortunately for Gary, the U of M program was housed in a single office on one of the 2
Twin-city campuses. There was virtually no security; apparently these colleges didn’t
take security very seriously. There were the campus police, but no guards on any of the
buildings. Gary brought Damon and Derek with him to handle this affair. The only dis-
pute they were having was about how big of a bomb to use for the office. Damon want-
ed to use 25 pounds of C-4, but Derek said that might destroy the building, not just the
office. Gary opted to take Derek’s advice, but he let Damon build a 25-pound bomb and
quietly told Derek to take out 20 pounds of the C-4 before he planted it. Maybe Gary
should have been a politician, he could be 2 faced when he needed to be.

Damon figured his Dad would just tell Derek to take out some of the C-4, so he would
add a 10-pound enhancement to Derek’s bomb. Derek was wrong about just using 5-
pounds, but assuming he pulled 20-pounds from the bomb, that would still make a 15-
pound bomb. He just had to be sure to add the C-4 to the bomb after Derek planted it.
On the afternoon of February 13th, Damon followed Derek to the office and saw him put
his bomb in a storage cabinet. After Derek left, Damon added the 10-pounds of C-4.
Those 8 little sticks should make quite a difference.

Los Angeles…

The Center for Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE) was located
at USC’s Viterbi School of Engineering. Seemed like the government couldn’t create
any agency without making a cute acronym out of its name. Clarence’s people kind of
stood out at USC, they neither looked Jewish or Asian. But, they located the office with-
out much trouble and a single bomb would do the trick. This bomb would require 6
sticks of the C-4, but it wouldn’t do anything more than wipe out the office. Ryan slipped
in and placed the bomb around 6pm on February 13th.

0200PST…14Feb12…

The bombs exploded within moments of each other. In Texas, the cousins let the AT-4s
fly at the very moment the bombs went off, just adding to the chaos. In Minnesota, the
extra 10-pounds of C-4 so structurally weakened the building that the third floor col-
lapsed on the second floor and brought it to the ground. It was just a good thing there
was no one in the building… In Los Angeles, the bomb was the perfect size and by the
time it went off, Ray, Ryan and Clarence were already back at the Underground City.

476
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 7 – Spring Vacation

“Now that’s more like it!” Clarence smiled, “The President upped the reward to $25 mil-
lion.”

“I just hope that Ron and Gary and the guys don’t have any trouble getting back here,”
Ray said, “The idea of declaring martial law seems a little extreme to me.”

“They’ll be ok,” Clarence assured Ray, “They took lots of money with them and this is
America. You can buy your way out of any kind of trouble.”

“Martha Stewart couldn’t,” Ray laughed.

“Alan Dershowitz said that it was her own fault,” Clarence reminded Ray, “If she would
have taken the 5th, they wouldn’t have convicted her of anything.”

“Are all attorneys’ Jewish Clarence?” Ray asked.

“Nah, man, they’re actors and accountants and bankers and businessmen and comics
and doctors and educators and financial consultants and geologists and hotel managers
and insurance brokers and…”

“I get the idea Clarence,” Ray said. “You don’t have to go all the way to Z.”

“Well, Ray, you have to realize that those folks are heavy into the professions,” Clar-
ence said, “What Jewish Mother would want to say my son the deliveryman or my
daughter the hooker?”

“I don’t know, Heidi’s mom?” Ray laughed.

It took Ron four days to get back to California and Gary a full week. It was time to lay
low for a while and take their spring break. They had to see how this bombing impacted
on the DHS and the Secretary. The word was that the President wasn’t too happy with
the Secretary. He’d already taken Firearms back and returned it to the Treasury De-
partment. And, if Costello did fire him, the Department would be messed up big time un-
til the new Secretary was selected, approved, sworn-in and got his feet wet. That could
take months.

“I’m back in the saddle again, out where a…” Ron sang.

“Shut up Ronald,” Gary said, “Who ever told you that you could sing?”

“I’m a regular Paganini,” Ron said.

477
“Like hell partner,” Gary said, “Pavarotti is a tenor; Paganini was a composer.”

“You didn’t know that,” Ron said, “You saw that in the movies.”

“So what?” Gary asked, “It’s true.”

“Now that the ATF is the ATFE again,” Clarence said, “Who we gonna pick on?”

“We’ve barely scratched the surface with the DHS,” Gary replied. “If Costello fires the
Secretary, they’re going to be so disorganized that we can do whatever we want. How
much C-4 do we have left? We might need more.”

“Derek said we had 2,500 of those sticks left, so over a ton and a half,” Ron said.
“That’s enough C-4 to blow up the world.”

“Maybe not the world Ron,” But we might take a crack at Mt. Weather,” Gary suggested.
“I was looking at their website and it has a pretty clear picture of the place. As far as ex-
plosives go, I pulled my Handbook off the shelf and looked it up. C-4 is 1.34 times as
powerful as TNT; I’ll give you the formulas so you can figure things for yourself.”

“The ‘minimum safe distance for personnel in the open’ for demolitions is 77 meters
times the cube root of the weight of the TNT in kilos. For C-4 its 85 meters times the cu-
be root of the weight of C-4 in kilos. So for a 200kg C-4 explosion we’re talking 500 me-
ters. Now, that’s just for people, and I assume it includes a healthy safety margin. Build-
ings aren’t going to be leveled all the way out,” Gary continued.

“Incidentally, cutting down a foot-thick tree takes ⅜ kg of C-4 if you do it the smart way;
nearly 4x as much if you just tie it next to the trunk,” Gary smiled. “Now for the rein-
forced concrete wall. The handbook doesn’t give an explicit case for blowing a hole in
the ceiling, probably because folks aren’t supposed to do anything quite that stupid. But
for a wall the charge of TNT in pounds (divide by 3 for C-4 in Kg) is given by the formula
P=KCR^3, where R is breaching radius in feet (thickness), K is the material factor, and
C is the Tamping Factor. The number of charges used is N=W/(2R) where W is the
width of the breach.”

“C ranges from 1 to 3.6 depending on how well tamped the explosive is; 2.0 is pretty
easy. For a ceiling tamping is not easy, so let’s call it 3.6. K ranges from 0.07 for earth,
up to 1.76 for small holes in reinforced concrete. The values for reinforced concrete are:

..R………….K..
1’ or less…1.76
1’-3’……….0.96
3’-5’……….0.80
5’-7’……….0.63
7’ or more...0.54

478
So if it’s 1 foot of reinforced concrete the charge size is (1.76*3.6*1^3)/3 = 2kg/charge,
and for a 4’ wide breach you need 4/(2*1) = 2 charges. So 4kg of C4 will do it. If it’s 2’ of
reinforced concrete you’ll need (0.96*3.6*2^3)/3 = 9kg in a single charge. Note that this
only blasts away the concrete; it doesn’t cut the reinforcing steel, but depending on what
mesh was used in creating the building you may be able to squeeze or torch your way
through that easily enough, although possibly not before someone comes to find out
what the hell that incredibly loud noise is. Note that if you can place the charges *inside*
the concrete by inserting them through the pipe you can get a much better C-factor, like
1.0. So that would drop your charge size to a little over a kilo for 1’ of concrete, 2.5kg for
2’, 45kg for 6’,” he concluded.

“I knowed you’d get in trouble reading books,” Clarence said, “Can you translate all that
into English?”

“He said to use 2 sticks of C-4 per foot of concrete and stay a long ways away, partner,”
Ron laughed. “Then get out your cutting torch and cut away the rebar.

“I knowed that Ron,” Clarence replied, “I was just checking to see if you understood. But
I reckon I’ll just use 3 sticks of C-4 and skip the cutting torch.”

So, after the spring break was over, they were going to attack Mt. Weather, huh? The
way that place was guarded they would be lucky to get within a mile. On the other hand,
if FEMA fell into chaos, maybe they’d forget to pay the guards or something. Besides,
they had plenty of weapons with ranges of over a mile. Maybe they could just attack the
place and FEMA would button up and they could see if it took 2 sticks of C-4 per foot of
concrete. Besides, until the Prez cancelled martial law, it wasn’t safe to travel. It had
been a bear getting back to California.

What was it that guy had said? Oh yeah, The mountain’s “real secrets” are protected by
warning signs, 10 foot-high chain link fences, razor wire, and armed guards. Curious
motorists and hikers on the Appalachian Trail are relieved of their sketching pads and
cameras and sent on their way. Security is tight. Mount Weather is the self-sustaining
underground command center for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FE-
MA). The facility is the operational center – the hub – of approximately 100 other Feder-
al Relocation Centers, most of which are concentrated in Pennsylvania, West Virginia,
Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina. Together this network of underground facilities
constitutes the backbone of America’s “Continuity of Government” program. In the event
of nuclear war, declaration of martial law, or other national emergency, the President,
his cabinet and the rest of the Executive Branch would be “relocated” to Mount Weath-
er.

That description surely didn’t square with the picture on the website. What were all of
those buildings about? There was only one way to find out of course, they would simply
have to travel to Virginia and do a little recon; just as soon as the Prez cancelled martial

479
law.

“You got those lists ready?” Gary asked.

“We just used the last list Gar-Bear,” Ron replied, “Except we added on some rockets
and increased the explosives a little.”

“How little and how many are some?” Gary wanted to know.

“Well we have 567 kilos of C-4, that’s 1,000 sticks, and 2 dozen AT-4s,” Ron replied.

“We’re going to have to take the dune buggy’s,” Gary announced, “From the picture, this
looks like a mighty big place to move around. And it’s all supposed to be underground,
so we’re going to have to do more than take out a few buildings.”

“Maybe we’d better take ½ the C-4,” Ron mused, “If it’s underground like you say, it
might be hard to get into.”

“I don’t intend to try and get into the place,” Gary explained. “You’re probably right. It
might take an A-bomb to penetrate their defenses. On the other hand, it might be easy
to keep them from getting out of the place once they’re all nicely tucked in. I expect they
got blast doors and the like, what about if we just weld them shut?”

“I’d never thought of it in that way,” Ron said, “Now that could work if they don’t have
some sort of escape tunnel or something.”

“If you built a complex like that would you put in an escape tunnel?” Gary asked.

“You’re darn tooting I would,” Ron replied.

“I would too, Ronald,” Gary agreed, “So we’re just going to have to find those escape
tunnels and block them too.”

“How are we going to do that?” Ron asked.

“Well hell partner, if the feds can use ground penetrating radar (gpr) on us, we can use
it on them,” Gary smiled. “We just got to figure where to get some of that equipment.”

“The USMS must have it,” Clarence suggested, “We need to go to LA.”

“Nope, we’ll just stop by one of their regional offices on the way to Virginia,” Gary said.
“One gpr is as good as another gpr, right?”

The President announced today that he is increasing the reward on the three men sus-

480
pected in the bombings of the three campuses, the announcer said. Apparently no one
has come forward to reveal where Olsen, Green and Rawlings are hiding. The reward
has been increased to a total of $50 million. As a point of reference, the reward on
Osama bin Laden remains at $25 million and the government previously paid out $100
million in rewards for the discovery of the hostages and the arrests of these same three
men.

In the opinions of some, mostly those radical right wing militant groups, these men are
patriots. This reporter cannot agree with those assessments. These are clearly danger-
ous terrorists. Admittedly, no one has been seriously injured in the attacks most recently
attributed to them or in the attacks they allegedly made in Kentucky and Tennessee.
Just because no one has been hurt doesn’t mean they are not terrorists. Sources who
claim to know the men or of the men assert that they are all in their 70’s and in poor
health. I believe these sources to be questionable at best. These men must be much
younger, and are probably some dissent group of military Special Forces personnel.
Stay tuned to CNN for further developments in this case.

“Wee doggie,” Ron said, “We’re Special Forces Gar-Bear.”

“We’re special, that’s for sure,” Gary agreed.

“$50 million,” Clarence said, “If it gets to $75 million, I’m going to turn us in myself.”

“We’ll let Ryan do it this time,” Gary suggested, “That will get him back in good with the
Army. In the meantime, we need to get us some portable welders.”

“Won’t they just blast their way out?” Clarence asked.

“Would you want to be inside a bomb shelter and have a bomb go off while you were
sealed inside?” Gary asked. “The problem will be to keep them in there long enough for
them to die off. There will probably be all kinds of government folks trying to rescue
them.”

“Well, we do have lots of Claymores and antitank mines and stuff,” Clarence observed.
“We can’t stop them, but we can sure show them down. How are you going to get eve-
ryone into Mt. Weather in the first place Gary?”

“We’re going to have to create a big enough diversion that they panic and run for cover,
my friend,” Gary said. “If either of you have any ideas about that, let me know.”

481
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 8 – Summer Sortie

Ninety days passed before Costello rescinded martial law. Or, as some suggested,
Marshal Law, and was that one “L” or two? Didn’t matter it was gone. Even having the
better part of 90 days to think about it, the three old geezers weren’t exactly sure what
they could do to throw the government into a sufficient panic to cause them to all rush to
Mt. Weather. They had several good portable welders so if they could get the people
inside, they could keep them there for a while. Whatever they were going to do, it was
going to need to be on a large enough scale to send the President and Congress run-
ning. As anticipated, Costello had fired the Secretary of Homeland Security and select-
ed the former chief of the ATF to take his place. This new guy was no slouch and they
might not have the several months they’d planned on for him to organize the DHS.

They could have staged an attack during the State of the Union Speech, but it had been
delivered. Article II, Section 3, Clause 1 of the Constitution provided:

“He shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union,
and recommend to their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary and
expedient; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of
them, and in Case of Disagreement between them, with Respect to the Time of Ad-
journment, he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper; he shall receive
Ambassadors and other public Ministers; he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully
executed, and shall Commission all the Officers of the United States.”

“…he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either of them…”

So, all they needed was to give him a reason to convene an extraordinary session to
address the Congress. Well, they could kill 2 birds with one stone if they attacked Mt.
Weather. That ought to throw him into a panic and force him to address Congress to
improve security or something, especially if they seriously damaged the aboveground
facilities. Costello would rush to Congress begging for an emergency appropriation to
make the repairs, or, so they hoped. Then they could turn right around and attack the
joint session of Congress.

This wouldn’t have to be a major attack, just enough to panic everyone. Then, hopefully,
fearing the worst, the Prez and Congress would all go rushing off to Mt. Weather and
batten down the hatches. Of course, there would probably be heightened security
around the place, but if they booby-trapped the grounds during the first attack, maybe
the security forces could be herded; or maybe not. But, it was the best that they could
come up with 90 days of brainstorming.

“I’m sure glad that butthead pulled the travel restrictions when he canceled martial law,”
Ron said.

They had the modified lists but found that three 5-ton trucks simply wouldn’t hold it all.
Gary found a used Petercar (Peterbilt Tractor) and a 40’ container on a trailer in Blythe.

482
That was nice in a way; they could load up the more obvious problem items in the con-
tainer, affix a seal and lie their way across the whole US without ever having to break
the seal. Unless one of those weigh stations gave them a problem. They made sure the
rig was under weight for any state they might cross and did all of the paperwork.

Damon was the trucker dude so he would pull the container. Damon had talked his way
out of a lot of problems while he’d been on the road. He always played it tiny bit on the
dumb side and was very respectful. And he always ran just 2mph under the posted
speed. Not enough to attract attention, either way. And, he was the consummate radio
talker, keeping the CB running most of the time BS’ing the other drivers and learning of
trouble before it came his way. Things that they could explain away went on the 5-ton,
like the dune buggy’s and food and other supplies.

They made their way to the nation’s capital and rented a storage locker to keep the
things they would need for the joint session. Then, they drove 40 of the 46 miles to-
wards Bluemont and looked around for a place to hole up that was out of the way. Un-
derstand, they had brought everyone but their three wives. They finally found a place to
put up out of sight and proceeded to prepare all of their little surprises for the security
forces who were sure to come in if they succeeded in getting the Prez and the Congress
to go to ground. They could get within a reasonable hike from the place with the dune
buggies and preposition the surprises. The Claymores didn’t need to be any more than
hauled, but the booby traps, generally consisting of a grenade or a ½ stick of C-4 re-
quired some attention.

Ray was a big help on this project and when they were ready, they moved in the last of
their supplies and brought in the Tac-50s and Barrett’s and some AT-4s. The AT-4 has
an effective range of 300 meters, but the overall range of the missile is 2,100 meters.
They also had the DPV’s equipped with the Mk-19’s, Ma-Deuces and M-240s. Leaving
the vehicles in place, they got just as close as they safely could and began to plant the
typical assortment of tripwire devices, including grenades, taped to trees with a tripwire
through the ring of the cotter pin, Claymores with tripwires, C-4 strapped to trees with a
tripwire initiated detonator, etc. Man purely had to be careful where he walked by the
time they were done. They even booby trapped the Claymores with a grenade under-
neath and pulled the pin after the Claymore was secure. It would take engineers a long
time to undo what they’d done. Certainly longer than the 5 days they spent planting the
stuff.

It wasn’t going to take but a few of them to make the attack. The cousins could fire off a
couple or three volleys of the AT-4s and they’d open up with the Mk-19’s. Gar-Bear was
counting on the mixture of weapons used in the attack and the very nature of the site to
be a dead giveaway. He wanted the government to think the three of them were behind
the attack. That would surely PO Costello and get him to go to Congress to raise the
reward. And, if they could do enough damage, they could hope that he’d make that criti-
cal personal appearance before the joint houses to rip them a new one and get the
hundreds of millions it would take to fix the place back up. I mean really, the President
must surely have a list of all the equipment the Army had given them. When they were

483
ready to attack, they got motels in the Leesburg area.

“What we gonna do if this don’t work?” Clarence asked.

“I been thinking about that my friend,” Gary replied, gentler than usual, “There’s always
that possibility. I figured maybe I’d just send the SOB a wire and say, Catch us if you
can. If he’s a man, he’d have to take the challenge.”

“He might just think the message was intended for Teddy Kennedy and ignore it,” Ron
laughed. “We gonna use the AT-4s on the Capitol Building?”

“We’ll have to, we won’t be able to get close enough,” Gary said. “Now, if we have eve-
rything in place I think that that we would be well served to stop and reflect on every-
thing we done. This is probably our most significant operation ever. Once we start the
ball rolling, there is no stopping. So, let’s take that time and review every single thing we
done. And remember, we’re going to be up against professionals every step of the way.
If we need to fix anything or change anything, now is the time.”

“Hey guys,” Ray greeted them, “I have a couple of issues we should discuss.”

“Let’s hear it Ray,” Ron said.

“First, almost all of the things we set up as obstacles were tripwire devices,” Ray point-
ed out. “I don’t like that one bit. We should have a better variety of obstacles. Second,
and fourth come to think of it, we’re going to hit this place twice, but we really don’t have
a good alternative way out if they block the road in both directions. We might be okay
the first time, but the second time with all of those dignitaries inside Mt. Weather, I’m
sure the government will flood the area with troops. Third, this rocket attack on the Capi-
tol Building is very risky. There are going to be security people all over the place.”

“I guess we need to go to plan B,” Gary said.

“We have a plan B?” Ron asked.

“No, we do not, but it appears that plan A has some serious problems,” Gary admitted.

“We can’t wait very long either,” Ray pointed out, “Or animals will start tripping those
devices and flat give us away.”

“How hard would it be to take everything back out?” Gary asked.

“Hell man, two weeks minimum, why?” Ray asked.

“You had better get started,” Gary suggested, “This plan is going back on the drawing

484
boards. It’s never going to work the way it is and I’m not getting our people killed be-
cause I’m too proud to recognize the flaws in this plan.”

“Ok, we’ll start pulling the stuff,” Ray agreed. “At least what we did put in isn’t that hard
to remove, just time consuming.”

“We need to rent a large house or even a lodge,” Clarence suggested. “We can’t stay in
motels for too long, that will attract too much attention.”

“If you have to, just buy one in the name of the corporation,” Gary suggested. “No wait, I
have a better idea. Ron, you and Clarence go buy an off the shelf corporation and set
up a bank account. We can transfer in money as needed using the Bahamas cutout.
And guys, use a small town lawyer and a branch of a large bank.”

Gary had Derek get him all of the newspapers he could find and they set about looking
for a property they could buy. He found a hunting lodge for sale and asked Derek to
check it out with the realtor. Tell the realtor it was a corporate retreat or something simi-
lar, Gary suggested. It took Ron and Clarence a couple of attorney’s before they found
the right guy. They bought the corporate shell and came lugging back a pile of paper-
work. The attorney would file all of the necessary papers, they explained.

“What did you do for a mailing address?” Gary asked.

“We got a P.O. Box at one of those private mail places,” Ron explained.

“What’s the name of our corporation?” Gary asked.

“The Government Improvement Group,” Clarence replied, “It sort of seemed appropri-
ate.

“I’ve got Derek out looking at I lodge I found in the classified,” Gary explained. “Ron,
why don’t you call Wells Fargo and have them transfer $5 million into the new account
through the cutout?”

“Already done partner,” Ron said, “But I suppose I got a mite heavy handed, I trans-
ferred $7.5 million. We just need to get your signature, on this card and we are good to
go in that department.”

“Which alias?” Gary asked.

“John Coffee Hays,” Ron said.

“And the checks?” Gary asked.

“Special order,” Clarence said, “We can pick them up the day after tomorrow.”

485
“Don’t you just love America?” Gary said, “If you have a fat checkbook and a good
handshake, you can do anything.”

“Just remember to take the 5th,” Clarence grinned.

“Hey Derek, that didn’t take long, what did you find out?” Gary said greeting his return-
ing son.

“Big Lodge on 10 acres Dad,” Derek reported. “Limited access. Price is pretty steep.”

“How steep?” Ron asked.

“$2.5 million, steep,” Derek said.

“Does it meet our needs?” Gary asked.

“Oh yeah, it’s perfect,” Derek said, “But we shouldn’t pay that much.”

“Call the realtor back and tell him or her we’ll take it for the asking price,” Ron said.
“Cash transaction, but we want clear title within a week. Tell him the officers need to get
away from town most urgently.”

“You have a corporation already?” Derek responded, surprised.

“Yep, Clarence said, “The name is the Government Improvement Group. And, we will
have checks in 2 days and the money is already being transferred to our new bank ac-
count.”

The Lodge really was the ideal location. Not so far away it would interfere with their
plans and it would give them time to relax and rethink the whole project. It had a main
lodge with 12 guest rooms, a dining room, kitchen and recreation room. There was a
large barn that could serve as their storage facility. It was fairly remote with a single
road entering the property. And, it was heavily wooded so they were pretty cut off from
the rest of the world.

They suggested that Ray raid a couple of armories and get whatever he needed. He’d
better do it all in one night, too because once he raided one, they tighten up security on
all of them for a while. Ray said Ryan and he and the cousins would handle it. Ray had
some definite items in mind to acquire. He wanted more of the MK3A2 grenades and a
large supply of the M-14 anti-personnel mines. These mines were not designed to kill,
but to incapacitate. All they would have to do was remove the metal washer from the
bottom of the mine that the Army added to make the mines easy to locate. Using con-
cussive grenades and non-lethal mines would accomplish their task just as well as us-
ing their more lethal cousins.

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The lodge, located in West Virginia, could be accessed cross-country from Mt. Weather.
They were going to need several ATV’s to enable their escape, however. That’s what
checkbooks are for, right? They selected the Max IV, 4-passenger vehicle and bought a
dozen. To make sure the vehicles would suit their purpose, the folks made several trips
from the lodge to within a mile of Mt. Weather. If they didn’t dwell at Mt. Weather for too
long, the plan was becoming very workable. They would have to hit hard and fast and
get out just as fast, especially the second time. At least they thought they had identified
all of the ‘escape’ tunnels and it would be a ‘simple’ matter to plant explosive charges to
seal them. Ray suggested a quick strike on the Capitol Building using a single AT-4.
They weren’t looking to damage the building seriously, just create fear and panic.

Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 9 – Simple is Good

01Aug12…

“Are we ready Ray?” Gary asked.

“I guess so Guys,” Ray replied, “We did real well at the armories and we have mines,
grenades and the Claymores. We can use the non-lethal stuff close in and the Clay-
mores as a last ditch backup measure. I mounted those portable welders on the second
group of ATV’s you got for me with the truck bodies. I think that the one thing that is
helping us more than anything else is that terrorist strike those Muslim’s did in Paris.
Right now, tensions are high. So, I suggest that we get started planting the explosives
and prepare to assault Mt. Weather for the first time.”

“They are likely to search the countryside looking for us, what preparations have we got
in place so they won’t find us?” Clarence asked.

“We’ve been working in that barn Clarence,” Ray said. “The little basement isn’t very
big, but will hold ½ of us for as long as we need to stay there. The rest of the folks can
just hang out at the lodge. It probably wouldn’t look right if the ‘lodge staff’ weren’t
around.”

“Basement?” Ron reacted, “Gar-Bear is big on digging holes.”

“I heard,” Ray admitted, “That’s where I got the idea.”

“Derek has a big mouth,” Gary said.

“Like father like son?” Ray chuckled.

They started the same day, planting large explosive charges at all of the escape tun-
nels. These were connected to radio controlled detonators. Then, they got as close to
Mt. Weather as possible, perhaps closer than the first time. They worked their way out-

487
wards, planting the mines and setting up the trip wired concussive grenades. They
worked steadily, but it took them a full 8 days to plant everything. They had done really,
really well at the 2 armories. The very last layer, all around the facility, was a ring of
Claymores. It seemed wasteful to plant them in direction they wouldn’t be going, but if
they just planted them in their direction of travel, they might just as well put up a sign.
On the 9th day they rested. And, made a quick trip to Washington to clean out that stor-
age locker.

10Aug12…the Lodge…

“So, is today the big day?” Clarence asked.

“That’s right Clarence,” Ray said. “Well take those DPV’s and attack from just behind
that line of Claymores. Those AT-4s and 40mm grenades should blow the crap out of
the buildings. Any guards that put up any resistance will find out just how accurate those
Ma-Deuces are. When we’ve done what damage we can, we’ll pull back. Jim, Harry and
Sam are leaving for Washington the same time as we head for Mt. Weather. They’ll hit
the Capitol, assuming Costello calls for a joint session.”

“Will they have any trouble getting out of Washington?” Gary asked.

“They should be well clear before the word gets out about the attack,” Ray said, “But if
not, they can get a motel room and go to ground.”

“Ok, let’s do it,” Gary quietly announced.

The guys had bought a used, bulletproofed Suburban. It was probably a government
surplus vehicle used by the Secret Service or something. Sam, Jim and Harry, dressed
in business suits and armed with some of the fake Secret Service ID’s and more espe-
cially the 10mm pistol and submachine guns, left for Washington with the single AT-4.
Ray, Stacy and Ryan, the 4 cousins, Damon and Derek and Mary took 5 of the DPV’s
and headed to Mt. Weather. When they got into position, they gave the President back
his AT-4s. Well the explosive part, anyway. The buildings began to explode and the
guards began to return fire in their general direction. They opened up with the Mk-19’s
and Ma-Deuces, putting most of them down. Those M16’s the guards carried were nev-
er intended for targets at such a great distance and none of the Freedom Riders even
had to duck a bullet.

Finally, with klaxons wailing, the remaining guards disappeared, probably into the un-
derground facility. They turned the vehicles and drove around the perimeter of their de-
fense until they were at the trail leading back to the Lodge. The Freedom Riders had
attacked the facility from a different direction than the direction to the Lodge, the feds
didn’t really need to know where they came from, now did they? Phase one of the 3-
phase operation was finally complete. Now they would just have to wait and see if Cos-

488
tello took the bait.

Washington DC…

“What do you mean they’re attacking Mt. Weather?” Costello asked. “Who is attacking
Mt. Weather? How many are there of them? Where did they come from?”

“Mr. President, we have no idea who or how many,” the Secret Service agent said,
“Come on Sir, we need to get to the Situation Room.”

Sometime later, the new Secretary for DHS approached the President.

“Mr. President, whoever it was cleared the area before we could get helicopters into
play. Consequently we have no idea how many it was or where they came from. How-
ever, we suspect it may be those three old guys from California or wherever they live
now or, a group of Muslim terrorists. This facility is the key to our national defense and
the damage is extensive. We need to start rebuilding immediately. It might not be a bad
idea to increase the reward on those men, either, in case it was them.”

“I’ll call over to the Hill and ask them to start and emergency appropriation bill today,”
Costello said. “How much are you going to need?”

“Conservatively $750 million, $1 billion tops,” the Secretary replied. “Mr. President, you
ought to address Congress directly and make the public aware of what a menace these
guys are. It’s an election year, you know, and it could have been Muslim terrorists.”

“Ok, I set it up and notify the media,” Costello said. “Are you still happy I gave you the
job?”

“All those commissions and the information flow isn’t one bit better,” the Secretary ob-
served. “I suppose it beats enforcing laws that punish people for their bad habits and
liking to hunt.”

Sam, Jim and Harry blended right in with the scene in Washington. A lot of people gave
them that ‘knowing look’ and they just remained deadpan, like they assumed real SS
agents did. On the way into Washington, they’d stolen a set of government plates so the
Suburban didn’t attract any attention. They were just 3 SS agents on a coffee break, at
one restaurant after another. They watched as the security slowly began to tighten in
the nation’s capital. Then a TV announcer broke in with an announcement that the Pres-
ident was going to address Congress and the nation at 9pm eastern. They assumed
that phase 1 worked as planned. Maybe they ought to go to the Capitol Building and get
some lunch. They were supposed to have some really good soup in the cafeteria. And,
they could maybe get lucky and pick the exact spot to hit the building with that AT-4. Not
that it mattered, but it would be more impressive it they actually hit the House instead of

489
the Senate or the Rotunda. They launched their missile at 9:15pm EST and head back
to the Lodge.

House Chamber…9pm…

…I give you the President of the United States.

Thank you very much. Mr. Speaker, Vice President Capuano, members of Congress,
distinguished guests, fellow citizens. I come to you tonight on a matter of the gravest
urgency. This morning rockets, grenades and machine gun fire were used to attack our
FEMA facility and personnel at Mt. Weather. Some have suggested that this was the
work of Muslim terrorists. However, I would point out that these are exactly the type of
weapons that the late President supplied to those homegrown terrorists, Gary Olsen,
Ronald Green and Clarence Rawlings.

The damage was extensive and I appear before Congress tonight to request an emer-
gency appropriation of $1.25 billion to make the initial repairs. We have no idea how
much the final cost will be, it could perhaps be as much as $3 billion.

Secondly, I request that Congress appropriate a larger reward for these terrorists. I be-
lieve that a reward of $100 million for their arrest, alive, would be ample. These men are
nothing but…

The explosion of the AT-4 rocket hitting the building paused the President’s speech in
mid-sentence. The SS agents rushed to protect their charge. The senior agent said he’d
been afraid of something like this and had Marine One standing by. The President in-
structed him to see that Congress got to Mt. Weather and they’d just button up the facili-
ty and let the Army and FBI track these SOBs down. They hurried to board Marine One.

“That went well,” Ron laughed. “The SOB near jumped out of his skin. The guys should
be back in an hour if everything goes according to plan.”

“I agree,” Gary said. “It didn’t look like that chopper was headed back to the White
House.”

“$100 million,” Clarence murmured, “Man, I’m rich.”

“I heard that Clarence,” Ron said. “You’re not rich, you’re just expensive.”

“We’ll attack the place tomorrow,” Ray said. “Providing they don’t put too many security
types in.”

In fact, there were a lot of security people, but they were almost entirely underground.
Locked down as the facility was, it was nearly impenetrable. No doubt there were secu-
rity forces on call in the event of an attack on the facility, probably the Army with Apache

490
gunships and a lot of soldiers. However, at the facility itself, the guard force was only
about doubled.

The Freedom Riders approached cautiously in their ATV’s and skirted their own booby
traps and mines. When they were close enough, they opened fire with the suppressed
rifles. It didn’t appear that any of the guards had an opportunity to raise an alarm; they
had gone down pretty fast. They brought the 4 ATV trucks up and began to weld. They
worked quickly, efficiently and quietly. When the entrances were sealed, they retreated.
Finally, Ray armed the radio detonator and blew the charges in the escape tunnels and
took out the communications. The rats were trapped.

“Sir, I’ve lost communications with Mt. Weather,” the soldier said.

“What do you mean, you lost communications?” the Colonel asked.

“That’s just it Sir, I don’t know, the lines suddenly went dead,” the soldier replied.

“Get those choppers airborne,” the Colonel said, “You don’t suppose they attacked the
place again do you?”

“This is the Area Commander’s office,” the soldier spoke into the phone, “We lost con-
tact with Mt. Weather. The Colonel said for you to get airborne.”

The choppers were at Mt. Weather in a matter of minutes. They could see bodies on the
ground, but no one moving. They radioed the information to the Commander and began
a search pattern around the facility, in a circular fashion, slowly expanding the circle.
Meanwhile, the 16 ATV’s were already almost back to West Virginia.

Electron beam welding was invented perhaps in the 1950’s. The welding process took
place in a vacuum chamber, but it had many advantages, including the ability to make
deep welds. In the period from 2004 to 2011, many advances had been made in the
equipment. They now even produced a portable EBW that had its own vacuum chamber
fitted to the welding head. The device permitted repairs to be made to existing struc-
tures.

The equipment was reasonably compact; in fact the largest part of the unit was the
100kw portable generator that powered the welder. Using the welder, one could weld
two metal plates together to a depth of nearly a foot. You could even weld many dissimi-
lar metals. Our boys believed in nothing but the best. They had fused the door shut to a
depth of 12”. It would take a whole lot of cutting to get them open again. The welds
didn’t go all around the door, but that didn’t really matter. You do realize, don’t you, that
those escape tunnels were also the air intakes for the shelter?

“You should have put in radar Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “Then we’d know when the govern-

491
ment was going to show up.”

“And explain it away as a squirrel tracking device for our hunters?” Gary smiled. “We
have no airport so we don’t need any radar. Anyway, there’s really no place for anything
to land, even a helicopter.”

“So, are we going to sell this place or what?” Clarence asked.

“It makes more sense to keep it, doesn’t it?” Gary suggested. “Then we’ll have a base of
operations on both coasts.”

“It’s going to be a week before they get those welds cut,” Ray said, “But at least they
have food, water and air.”

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Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 10 – Take Small Shallow Breaths

“Mr. President, we have a problem,” the Secretary of DHS said.

“What now?” Costello asked.

“The guards can’t seem to get out of the doors,” the Secretary reported. “It’s almost as if
they’re welded shut.”

“But there are escape tunnels, right?” Costello asked. “Have them go out one of those
and see what’s blocking the door.”

“We already tried Mr. President,” the Secretary explained. “Those explosions we heard
earlier that we couldn’t explain? Those were the escape tunnels being blown up.”

“All of them?” Costello asked.

“Yes Sir,” the Secretary replied.

“Well, we will just wait for the Army to unblock the doors, no problem,” Costello said.
“We have food, water and air. What’s the problem?”

“Mr. President, the escape tunnels were also the air intakes, if they don’t hurry, we’re
going to run out of air,” the Secretary grimaced.

“How long do we have?” Costello asked, concerned.

“72 hours, Mr. President.”

Where is William Bendix when you need him? [He died in 1964. Following a stomach
ailment, Bendix died at 58 from malnutrition and subsequent pneumonia. His wife of 37
years, Theresa Stefanotti, and their two daughters survived him. I didn’t know that.] This
was most certainly one of those revolting developments.

“So how long will it take to cut open those doors?” the Colonel asked.

“Hard to say Colonel,” the Sergeant said, “They’re pretty thick and they’re welded in
several places. It depends upon how deep those welds are. We can’t get the doors
open until we can cut out all of those welds. Whoever did this welded each door in sev-
eral places, so they must have had several welders.”

“Put everyone on one door, Sergeant. We have to get those people out of there,” the
Colonel ordered.

493
“Yes Sir,” the Sergeant acknowledged.

It became a race against time, and the military welders had no idea how deep the weld
extended. One of the problems, of course was the tungsten alloy door, which seemed to
absorb the heat. While the welders tried to get through the door, the Colonel sent troops
out to scout the area. It didn’t take very long for some of them to run into the tripwires
and mines. The Colonel had no choice but to send for engineers to locate and defuse
the weapons. The M-14 mine has no disarming safety, by the way.

“Choppers,” Ray yelled.

Everyone sat tight. The coppers had nowhere to land and if they were attack helicop-
ters, surely they wouldn’t fire on an unknown target. When the choppers failed to see
anyone the pilots radioed in the lodge’s location and moved on.

“It’s time for all of us non-civilian types to hit that basement,” Ray suggested. “The
troops can’t be far behind.”

“There you go Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “Your favorite place. What is it with you and base-
ments?”

“That, my friend is a long story,” Gary said quietly, “And I won’t tell you sometime.”

Jim, Sam and Harry and their wives plus Jennifer and the other women stayed at the
Lodge. Everyone else made for the basement. The gag this time was that it was the Ex-
ecutives’ wives on an outing to get away from their husbands. Jim and Sammy, Sam
and Mary and Harry and Janet were the ‘corporate employees’ in charge of maintaining
the Lodge and preparing meals, etc. About 40 minutes after the choppers left, 2 Hum-
mers and a truckload of troops pulled in. Everyone had to produce their ID’s (fake) and
the troops thoroughly searched the grounds. The Lieutenant in charge of the detail
asked a lot of questions, but seemed satisfied with the answers, at least for the mo-
ment. He wrote down a lot of the information before he left.

“You can come out now,” Jim said.

“What did they want to know?” Gary asked.

“Just the usual stuff,” Jim said, “They made us show our ID’s and questioned the ladies.
That Lieutenant wrote down a lot of information, though. Don’t know what to make of
that.”

“Give out any of the phony business cards?” Gary continued.

“Well, yeah, weren’t we supposed to?” Jim asked.

494
“Ronald, did you get the gig.com website set up?” Gary asked.

“Yeah, it has an ‘Under Construction’ sign, just like you wanted. And I used the P.O.
Box and the cell phone number, just like you told me,” Ron confirmed.

“We’re ok Jim, the cell phone is set up with a mailbox for the corporation and they won’t
get anything from the P.O. Box.” Gary said, “The website just shows that information
anyway.”

“Isn’t technology marvelous Jim?” Ron asked. “Gary even made up some letterhead on
the inkjet. The corporation is mostly form with very little substance. The only thing the
corporation will show up owning is this Lodge. And they’ve already checked it out.”

“I wouldn’t be too quick to honk my horn if I were you,” Ray said. “Once they get those
people out of that shelter, all hell is going to break loose.”

“How long has it been?” Costello asked.

“Altogether or since the last time you asked Mr. President?” the Secretary asked.

“Since those explosions and the last time the door was open,” Costello said.

“48 hours since the explosions and 49 hours since the door was opened Mr. President,”
the Secretary said, “Try taking small shallow breaths.”

“How much longer Sergeant?” the Colonel asked.

“Hard to say Sir. We cut through two of the welds so far. Those guys must have used a
portable electron beam welder, the welds are about a foot deep,” the Sergeant replied.

“Can’t we drill a hole in that metal?” the Colonel asked.

“No Sir, we tried a diamond drill, but it only cut an inch in an hour,” the Sergeant said.
“We gave up. But if you want, we can try again Colonel. The thing is Sir; the door will be
open by the time we drill a hole all the way through. The door is 30” thick.”

“All right Sergeant, keep me informed,” the Colonel said.

“Yes Sir,” the Sergeant replied.

This word is just in, the announcer said. Army officials finally admitted that the Presi-

495
dent, Vice President, the Cabinet and the Democratic members of Congress are
trapped in the Mt. Weather Facility in Bluemont, Virginia. Apparently the Republican
members of Congress refused to go. The Colonel in charge of opening the door to the
facility tells CNN that the door was welded shut using a portable electron beam welder.
However, they have removed over half of the welds and expect to be able to release the
President and the others in less than 48 hours. The shelter has an unlimited water sup-
ply, food for 200 people for 30 days and air supplied though a series of air vents that
also serve as emergency exits. According to…

“Jeez,” Ron blurted out, “Are those the escape tunnels we blew shut?”

“Must be,” Ray said, “They were the only things that showed up on the GPR.”

“I wonder how much air that place holds?” Clarence asked.

“Well, if it’s not enough guys, we may be in deep do-do,” Gary said.

“There ya go Gar-Bear, ya finally went and did it, didn’t you? You trapped 80% of Con-
gress and the whole Executive branch of the government in a hole in the ground without
air. Let’s see, the Secretary said it had been 48 hours and that they only had 72 hours
of air. That must mean that they have about 24 hours left, right? And the Sergeant had
only removed ½ of the welds in 48 hours, right? Talk about being a day late! But wait,
what about all those bottles of emergency oxygen? Every shelter, except yours, has
emergency bottles of oxygen doesn’t it? Or, did the Secretary count those bottles in
when he came up with 72 hours? Kind of make you wonder, doesn’t it?

“I’ve got to go lay down,” Gary said, “I’m getting another headache.”

“Let me check you over,” Jennifer suggested.

“Ok, but can I have a shot of Demerol then?” Gary asked.

“We don’t use Demerol anymore Gary, it kills people,” Jennifer replied taking his pulse.

“Good, give me 2 and bury me in the morning,” Gary said.

“When did you get this headache?” Jennifer asked.

“About 2 minutes ago when I realized that we may have killed off most of the govern-
ment,” Gary replied.

“Hell partner, you’ll be a hero to all those survivalist buddies of yours,” Ron laughed.

“Yeah and the reward will be bigger,” Clarence said.

“I can’t find anything wrong Gary,” Jennifer said, “It must be stress.”

496
“Oh good, I can take a handful of Xanax and sleep it off,” Gary said.

“The maximum dose for someone like you would be 1 mg,” Jennifer said.

“Ok Doc,” Gary smiled, “Whatever you say.” He took 3 of the 0.5mg tablets and went to
bed.

They broke out the CO2 scrubbers in the shelter and that helped a little. Then, at the
70-hour mark, they began to bleed oxygen into the air. It was going to be close. The
most optimistic guess was that they had about 25 hours worth of oxygen. Would the re-
sidual oxygen in the air be enough to last when the bottles ran out? You already know
the answer, I made it plain as day. Think about it.

“How is it going Sergeant?” the Colonel asked.

“We have 3 cut off Sir and we’re working as fast as we can on that last weld,” the Ser-
geant replied.

“It’s important Sergeant, but don’t rush it,” the Colonel said. “We wouldn’t want anyone
to get hurt this close to having the door open.”

“Yes Sir,” the Sergeant acknowledged. “Everybody take 10.”

“You know Sergeant, the Engineers are having a terrible time,” the Colonel said.

“Sir?” the Sergeant replied.

“Yes. They are finding plenty of booby traps, but so far they are all non-lethal devices,”
the Colonel explained. “They pulled the washers off those M-14 mines, so have to go
very slowly. But it’s almost like whoever did this didn’t want to hurt anyone. Besides,
what good did it do for them to weld those doors shut? They must have known we could
cut off the welds.”

“I don’t know Colonel, questions like that are above my pay grade Sir,” the Sergeant re-
plied.

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Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 11 – How much Oxygen?

The House of Representatives had 435 seats, 80% filled by Democrats. The Republi-
cans in the fall of 2012 held 87 seats and they had refused to go to Mt. Weather. The
Senate had 100 seats, 79% filled by Democrats, thus there were also 21 Republican
Senators who had refused to go. The Secretary, being new on the job, asked one of his
staff how much air there was and was told there was enough for 72 hours, not counting
the oxygen. This assumed that all the members of Congress were present, but the staff
member didn’t mention that.

Therefore, there was an excess amount of breathable air equal to 108 people for 72
hours; or 7,776 man-hours of extra air. Plus 25 hours of oxygen for 108 people bringing
the grand total to 10,476 extra man-hours of oxygen-laden air. But you all caught that,
right? Gary did; but Gary didn’t know how many people were in Mt. Weather so he had
no idea about how long that extra breathable air would last the people inside; and he
didn’t know about the 72 hours or the 25 hours so he couldn’t do the math. Rather than
give his friends false hope, he kept his mouth shut. Gary’s sense of timing always left a
little to be desired.

“How are you doing Sergeant?” the Colonel asked.

“Sir, it looks like just a few more hours,” the Sergeant replied. “It’s has taken us just
about 24 hours per weld, Sir. We have about 20” to go on the last one. Everything con-
sidered, Colonel, this is one thing I never expected that would happen. Those doors
were to protect the people, not to imprison them. And we got lucky Sir, we just received
some new equipment last week that cuts a little faster than the older equipment.”

“So, it looks like the one door will take you about 96 hours?” the Colonel summarized.

“Actually 95 sir,” the Sergeant said, “But essentially 4 days, Yes Sir.”

“I checked with some of the Engineers and they say it’s pretty difficult to do electron
beam welding,” the Colonel said.

“Yes Sir,” The Sergeant agreed, “It essentially has to be done in a vacuum. And, it takes
a lot of power Sir. These guys must have had several of those new portable rigs. They
are large and expensive. They had to have had small trucks or something like that to
move them.”

“You know Sergeant, President Costello was going to recommend that Congress up the
rewards on those guys Olsen, Green and Rawlings,” the Colonel observed. “They seem
to have no end of money at their disposal. One thing that the President didn’t say in his
speech was that they’ve gone out of their way to avoid killing. And he was right about
that equipment, I issued some of it to them myself when I was assigned to Flagstaff.
Those boys have tanks, Paladin self-propelled armor, missiles of several types, explo-
sives, and even a couple of the M1117’s. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if they had some-

498
one turn them in and collected the reward on themselves. And CNN was suggesting
they were Special Forces. Don’t you believe it Sergeant; they’re just three old survival-
ists who happen to support and defend the same Constitution that we do.”

“The Colonel sounds as if he admires the men,” the Sergeant said.

“In a way Sergeant, I do,” the Colonel chuckled. “But if we can find them, that won’t stop
me from arresting them.

“Yes Sir,” the Sergeant acknowledged.

“I wouldn’t be in this mess if you were doing your job,” the President told the Secretary.

“I didn’t attack the Mountain and I surely didn’t attack the House, Mr. President,” the
Secretary objected.

“But you should have been better prepared at DHS,” Costello countered.

“The Department was prepared Mr. President,” the Secretary protested. “I wasn’t the
idiot who designed this place and was too cheap to put in separate air intakes and es-
cape tunnels. My department isn’t responsible to the failure of the various intelligence
agencies to communicate possible threats between agencies. If we get out of this, I’m
going to retire and hunt whoever did this down. But, it won’t be to turn them in; it will be
to join them. They’re obviously smart, resourceful and can put a plan together.”

“And,” he thought, “They didn’t kill a single one of my ATF agents.”

“Mr. Secretary, have your resignation on my desk within the hour,” Costello screamed.

“Here you go, you don’t have to wait an hour,” the Secretary said handing the President
an envelope.

“We’re through Sir,” the Sergeant said, “Just as soon as we get a tank and some log
chains we’ll have the door open.”

“Good work Sergeant, there will be a promotion in this,” the Colonel said.

“Great,” the Sergeant said, “I always wanted to be an E-10.”

They attached the chains and started the Abrams moving. The door groaned almost as
if it didn’t want to give up the fight and slowly began to open. The foul air rushed out as
the fresh air of the Virginia countryside replaced it. CNN, FOX, ABC, CBS and NBC car-

499
ried the event live. Each commentator had his or her version of the event. Slowly, peo-
ple began to emerge into the light from the cavernous shelter. President Costello was
busy shaving and then was going to get into a clean shirt. He couldn’t meet the press
looking like he did. The new, er former, Secretary of DHS declined comment and
climbed into a vehicle to be transported from the scene.

“Colonel, to show you how grateful we are, I’m going to put your name up before Con-
gress for General,” Costello said. “And Sergeant, a promotion is in order for you, too.
You’ll make a fine Lieutenant.”

“Thank you Sir,” they both replied.

After the President and his entourage left, the Colonel leaned over to the Sergeant and
said, “I’ll take his promotion Sergeant, and then I’ll retire.”

“I didn’t spend 30 years in this man’s Army just to become a Lieutenant, Colonel,” the
Sergeant replied, “I’m putting in my papers when we get back to the fort.”

The Lodge…just after the rescue…

“All’s well that ends well,” Gary said.

“I should have known that a government engineer designed that place,” Ray lamented.
“Who would have thought that they’d use the air intakes as escape tunnels?”

“Well, at least we don’t have several hundred deaths to explain to the good Lord, when
we get to the Pearly Gates,” Clarence observed.

“You know guys, I was saying that we ought to keep this place,” Gary added. “How’s
about Jim, Sam and Harry stay on and we run this as the Mt. Weather Resort? They
can bring their kids here and we’ll have one legitimate business as a cover for any fu-
ture operations.”

“Works for me,” Ron said.

“I agree,” Clarence chimed in.

In the election of November of 2012, the voters showed that they had had enough. The
Republicans hadn’t run to Mt. Weather to hide and the Republican candidate, although
trailing in the polls scored a landslide win, getting 62% of the vote. The Republicans al-
so gained a small majority in both houses of Congress. The lame duck President and
Congress voted $2 billion for repairs of Mt. Weather, and almost in an afterthought,
raised the reward on the dynamic trio to $250 million.

500
As planned, Ryan turned the men in and collected his $250 million reward. It turned out
that the men were hiding out in the Flagstaff area all of the time. Yeah, for all of about 5
minutes. The Sheriff put on extra security at the jail; he wasn’t about to lose the prison-
ers this time. The convoy taking the prisoners to the airport for transportation back to
Washington was ambushed by a small group of heavily armed men and women. They
had M-1117’s and some of those DPV’s. The Sheriff’s people couldn’t resist all of those
Mk-19’s and Ma-Deuces and rather than risk a large loss of life, surrendered their pris-
oners. Ryan deposited the check in his Wells Fargo account, transferred the money to
the Bahamas and left it sit, drawing interest until the three old geezers decided what to
do with their new found fortune.

The Underground City…

“Now, Clarence,” Ron kidded, “Now you can say it.”

“I’m rich,” Clarence yelled. “But what are we going to do with $275 million guys?”

“We could buy Mexico, “Ron suggested, “All of the Mexicans are in the US.”

“How about a housing development,” Gary suggested. “We own enough land and this
area here would be ideal. Besides, we have about the best bomb shelter in the world.
We could make everything 100% energy independent. You know, electrical panels on
the roofs, solar water heaters, a wind farm, maybe a solar array and even electric cars.
We could be totally free of hydrocarbons.”

“I never met a hydrocarbon I didn’t like,” Ron said. “We could get into producing that bi-
odiesel stuff and the like. That way we could keep our Dodge Ram’s.”

“What would you call this housing development?” Clarence asked.

“How about Freedom Village?” Gary suggested. “And rather than hiding all of those
tanks and arty and stuff, we’ll put the tanks, the M-1117’s, the Paladins and stuff on dis-
play. We can put up a sign that says they are mockups and another sign that says that
due to insurance reasons, people can’t look inside. Hide it all in plain sight.”

“I don’t know Gar-Bear,” Ron said, “We’re pretty old to be doing this stuff. You’re going
to be 70 in March and you’re the youngest one of the three of us.”

“Didn’t figure on doing any of it ourselves guys,” Gary said, “We’ll hire Engineers to de-
sign everything and contractors to put it in.”

“What kind of houses we gonna have,” Clarence asked, “You going to build them slip
form things you’re always writing about?”

501
“No sir,” Gary said, “I figured we’d get a distributorship with a manufactured housing
company and buy mobile homes at cost.”

“This all sounds very interesting,” Ray said, “I wish we’d be around to see it. But Stacy
and I and Ryan and Jennifer are moving up to Jackson.”

“But why?” Gary asked, “This would be the ideal community. We could just invite sur-
vivalists to buy in and it would be our own private little army.”

“Well, I’ve always had a hankering to live in Jackson and Stacy is from there,” Ray ex-
plained. “Ryan wants to go wherever we go and Jennifer wants to be with Ryan, though
I can’t imagine why.”

Ryan caught Ray’s wink and said, “Not that it hasn’t been fun, you understand, BUT,
we’re getting a little tired of being one step ahead of the law. Anyway, Jen says that
she’s going whether I come or not.”

“Ok, I guess,” Gary said, “When are you folks planning on leaving?”

“We don’t really have a lot of possessions,” Ray said, “The Corporation always owned
everything so anytime, I guess.”

“How are you folks fixed for money?” Ron asked.

“We have most of the money you passed out the last time,” Ray said, “We’re good.”

“You’ll be taking your own guns and things, but help yourself to any of the government
weapons we’ve collected,” Gary offered.

“We might take a few things,” Ray said, “Thanks for offering. But I think we’ll travel light.
It will be just my old hound, Promise and us. We’ll let you know before we leave.”

After Ray left, Gary spoke up. “I sure hate to see them go guys, what say we give them
part of that reward money just to make sure they have everything they need?”

“Sounds good to me,” Ron said.

“How much you planning to give them?” Clarence asked.

“I was thinking 10% of the reward Clarence,” Gary replied, “Is that okay with you?”

“Easy come, easy go,” Clarence laughed, “Sure Gary, get them a cashier’s check for
$25 million. Jennifer can build a clinic or something.”

“Look at it as an investment guys,” Gary said, “That whole Washington/Mt. Weather

thing worked because of the Muslim unrest. You never know when we might need their

502
help again. Besides, Ray did good on that job.”

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Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 12 – Freedom Village

“I guess we’re ready to leave,” Ray announced.

“We have a little going away present for you partner,” Ron said. “Clarence, do you have
that check?”

“Here you go Ray, Jennifer can build a clinic or something,” Clarence smiled handing
Ray the cashier’s check.

“$25 million?” Ray gasped, “Are you guys’ nuts?”

“If it wasn’t for you folks,” Gary said, “We wouldn’t have any of that money. It will let you
get a good start up in Wyoming and if you invest it wisely, you’ll never have to worry
about money again.”

“Good luck on your project guys,” Ray grinned, “We may come down and check it out
one of these days.”

And with that, the four were gone, at least for now.

“So, with Sam, Jim and Harry and their wives back in West Virginia and Jennifer gone,
what are we going to do for medical treatment around this place?” Ron asked.

“Let me show you these plans I’ve been working on Ron,” Gary said, “They should an-
swer your question.”

The plans were for a community of triplewide mobile homes, each on a ½ acre lot. Gary
had sketched in an area for the wind turbines, the solar array and a combined battery
storage and generation plant. Gary apparently figured that if the lights went out, the
wind didn’t blow for a while and the sun didn’t shine, they could switch to biodiesel
fueled backup generators. The plans also showed a warehouse complex, no explana-
tion was given, and a medical clinic. There was a ‘service’ station marked in next to the
biodiesel plant and apparently Gary even planned to build some stores. Freedom Vil-
lage would be a self-contained community and they would never need to go to town to
shop.

“So what are you going to put in those warehouses?” Ron asked.

“I figured we’d store a one-year supply of everything the community needs, partner,”
Gary said. “And we can grow and butcher our own livestock and produce our own milk
and cheese.”

“Who are we going to get to move into this place?” Clarence asked.

“You know Clarence, I was thinking we just let military veterans move in,” Gary replied,

504
“What do you think of that?”

“They gonna have enough money to pay for a home?” Clarence wondered.

“They will if we finance them pal,” Gary suggested. “Look, we split the difference be-
tween the cost of a setup home and the MSRP including setup and everything. That
way they get the home at a discount. Hell, we can call it a veteran’s discount. And, we
can finance them at say 5%. You have to remember, we don’t really have any invest-
ment here; it is all reward money.”

“Gar-Bear 200 homes is probably about 3.4 people times 200 or 680 people,” Ron
pointed out. “We don’t really have enough firepower for that many people. What with the
AWB and everything, where are you going to get the weapons and equipment we’ll
need? I distinctly remember you telling Ray that we would have our own private army.”

“Ron, Damon is a veteran, and he has one talent above all others,” Gary said, “We’ll
steal what we need of course. And, if they think it’s us, they’ll probably authorize anoth-
er reward and when it gets big enough, we’ll cash in on it.”

“Ryan had a point Gary,” Clarence said, “I’m getting a little tired of being on the run.
What are we going to do when someone recognizes us?”

“Well Clarence, you just say, something like, ‘I get a lot of that; someone is always mis-
taking me for that guy,’ or, ‘you know, I admire the guy, I wish I was him’. Anyway you
get the idea.”

“What do we do if that doesn’t work Gar-Bear?” Ron asked.

“Did I show you where I planned to put the Cemetery guys?” Gary asked.

Washington DC…

“What is this new Freedom Village community they’re building out near Blythe?” the
President asked.

“President Santorum, I haven’t even heard of the place,” the aide replied, “Where did
you learn of the community?”

“There was an article in Ecological Engineering,” Santorum replied, “It appears that the
place is going to be totally energy independent. Look into it, will you?”

“Certainly, what do you want to know?” the aide replied.

“Find out whom is behind the project who is going to be living there and what the com-

505
munity is going to be like,” Santorum explained. “These people might be on to some-
thing. Despite what everyone in the US thinks, the Republican Party is not pro-oil and
anti-environment. Who knows, maybe these people are on to something that the Party
can support?”

“Yes sir,” the aide replied, “It will take a few days.”

“No hurry,” Santorum acknowledged.

Freedom Village…

“There you go with those basements again,” Ron groaned. “Why do you want to put in
basements in earthquake country?”

“Ron, a basement is almost free storage space,” Gary said. “You have to put in a foun-
dation and a slab anyway and the only extra materials we’re using is a little concrete for
walls and some ‘I’ beams. Pretty cheap per square foot when you consider how much
storage you get.”

“Why are you having them weld the steel beams of the homes to the supporting
beams?” Ron asked.

“Man those homes won’t go anywhere once they’re welded down,” Gary replied.

“I had an inquiry from someone in Washington about the development,” Ron mentioned
casually.

“What did they want to know?” Gary asked.

“All about us, who we’re selling to and stuff like that,” Ron replied.

“And?” Gary asked.

“Sent them the sales brochure, the CC&R’s and an application to purchase a home,”
Ron said. “That’s what we send everyone else who inquires.”

“Ok, good,” Gary said. “So far, we’ve been pretty lucky attracting retired servicemen,
how many families do we have?”

“63 and every single one of them has a retired vet with 20 or more years of service,”
Ron said.

“Good, did Clarence start up the shooting club?” Gary asked.

506
“Yeah. They all joined when they found out we provided free ammo,” Ron smiled.

“How is Damon doing on his little private project?” Gary asked.

“Gar-Bear, we have enough M16’s and ammo to fight WW III,” Ron said.

“We won WW III, Ron,” Gary reminded him, “You mean WW IV?”

“Call it whatever you want,” Ron said, “Did you see the news last night?”

“If those Israelis don’t stop killing Palestinians,” Gary commented, “There aren’t going to
be any Palestinians for them to fight with.”

“That might be the general idea Gar-Bear,” Ron opined.

Palmdale…

“All I’m saying Chris is that we can get a fortune for this house and buy ½ acre with a
triplewide on it over dirt cheap in the new Freedom Village the guys are building,” Patti
said. That ought to appeal to you.”

“I don’t know Patti,” Chris replied, “Gary has been on a survivalist kick for as long as I’ve
known him. Besides, I’m not retired military or even a veteran.”

“Yeah, but one little call to Sharon and I can fix that,” Patti demurred. “As large as those
lots are, you can build a garage and build race cars to your heart’s content.”

“Ok, call Sharon and see what she can do,” Chris gave in, “But we’re not putting this
house on the market until we’re sure we can buy in over there.”

Freedom Village…

“Sharon, Patti,” Patti said.

“Hi Patti, how are things in Palmdale?” Sharon asked.

“I want to sell the house and move to that new community you guys are building,” Patti
explained, “But Chris says we can’t list the house until he has an iron clad guarantee
that we can move in.”

“List the house, Patti,” Sharon said, “Gary knows who wears the pants in this family.”

507
The next morning…

“Anyway, Chris and Patti are moving in as soon as their house sells,” Gary explained.

“Chris isn’t a veteran,” Ron protested.

“Tell that to Sharon, Ronald, she says that he fought with us so that makes him a veter-
an.”

“Oh, the boss is in charge, huh?” Ron said. “I just hope Linda doesn’t go inviting people
to move in here.”

Washington…

“They sent me a sales brochure, application and their CC&R’s, Mr. President,” the aide
reported. “I checked on the corporation. It’s a Nevada Corporation that’s closely held. I
ran the names of the individuals through NCIC and didn’t get a hit. I checked and the
principals have passports, driver’s licenses, and not a single violation either. They fi-
nance their own paper and only sell to retired military veterans. This is quite a display
they have of mockup military hardware, too.”

“No exceptions?” Santorum asked.

“Not that I know of, no,” the aide replied.

“Ok thanks, Rob, this might be a place to keep an eye on,” Santorum said. “What’s this
about a rash of armory break-ins?”

“The FBI is on it Mr. President,” Rob replied, “Apparently someone is stealing military
rifles, ammo and individual equipment. Since these are automatic weapons, the ATF is
on it too. But whoever is doing it is pretty slick. So far the FBI hasn’t come up with any
forensic evidence leading to anyone. Essentially their investigation is stalled.”

“Are we talking a large quantity here or what?” Santorum asked.

“Maybe enough for 2 or 3 companies of soldiers,” Rob replied, “So it amounts to quite a
bit, yes.”

“Keep an eye on that situation too Rob,” Santorum directed. “Has the Secretary of State
shown up yet? We’ve got to get to the bottom of this Israeli situation before the Muslim’s
start blaming us.”

“The Secretary is waiting, Mr. President,” Rob said, “But the Muslims began blaming us
for Israel in 1948, so don’t be surprised at anything the Secretary tells you.”

508
“Show her in will you?” Santorum directed.

“Madam Secretary, how are things down in Texas?” Santorum greeted her.

“They’re letting President Bush out of the hospital,” Secretary of State Condoleezza
Rice replied. “He got a letter a while back. All it said was, “I changed my mind, and I
won’t be back.”

“Hmm, I wonder what that was all about.” Santorum asked.

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 13 – But They’re Real

“Apparently, President Bush was shot at after he retired,” Condi said, “While it’s appar-
ent that whoever did it intentionally missed, they left a note that said, ‘I’ll be back’ and
President Bush became paranoid. But when he got the second note, he snapped right
out of it.”

“That was about the time Kerry was killed, so the FBI and Secret Service were pretty
busy,” she said, “Anyway they didn’t come up with anything.”

“What’s the situation in Israel?” Santorum asked.

“They go back and forth depending on which party is in power, but I think that they may
have pushed too hard this time,” Condi replied.

“In what way?” Santorum asked.

“It’s so hard to get good Intel, but,” Condi said, “Hamas and some of the other organiza-
tions are experiencing resurgence in membership and I heard a name recently that I
hadn’t heard in a while.”

“What name?” Santorum asked.

“bin Laden,” Condi said, “Not Osama, but a son.”

“We haven’t heard that name in a while Condi,” Santorum agreed, “What is al Qaeda up
to?”

“We have no idea, as usual,” she replied. “Like I said, it’s really hard to get good intelli-
gence.”

Palmdale…

“For crying out loud Chris,” Patti said, “What do you mean it’s not enough? We only paid
$99 thousand for this place, I think $540 thousand is more than enough.”

“But the house next door went for $575 thousand,” Chris insisted.

“Yeah, but it’s a 2 story with 1,800 plus square feet. This house is a one story with only
1,254 square feet,” Patti said, “We’re selling, so you best start packing your crap!”

Chris supposed that he could finish the car when they got to eastern California. At least
he had enough money out of the house to pay off the old house, pay cash for the new
house, build a garage and fully equip it. He could probably get that million Gary had giv-

510
en him replenished back to the $1 million and still have enough cash to race for a cou-
ple of seasons. Gary would probably insist that he join that shooting team Patti told him
about, too. Well, if Gary insisted, he would, but he would rather be a wheelman than an
infantryman.

Freedom Village…

“And I’m telling you that those aren’t mock ups,” the Sergeant insisted. “We used an
Abrams to pull the door open on Mt. Weather last year and I know an Abrams when I
see one.”

“I don’t believe I caught your name Sergeant,” Derek said.

“Sergeant Major William Jefferson, USA retired,” Bill replied, “What’s your name?”

“Derek Olsen,” Derek replied, “I was an Abrams commander in the Iowa National
Guard.”

“Any relation to that Gary Olsen that the government can’t seem to keep their hands
on?” Bill asked.

“He’s my father,” Derek said.

“So you’re the son of one of the guys who was responsible for that Mt. Weather busi-
ness?” Bill replied, surprised.

“He was accused,” Derek said, “And arrested, but in this country, you are innocent until
you are proven guilty.”

“But he was there, right?” Bill asked.

“Actually, my father never set foot on Mt. Weather, Bill,” Derek replied.

“The Colonel who was in charge of the rescue said that he really admired whoever was
behind it,” Bill remarked. “He said that the engineers had one hell of a time removing
some of the explosives those people planted because they used non-lethal devices.
The M-14 mines were harder to remove than the M-16’s and they made it even harder
by removing the washers the Army installed to make the mine easy to detect.”

“You don’t say,” Derek responded. “So what ever happened to this Colonel of yours?”

“He stayed in long enough to get the promotion to General the President promised and
then retired,” Bill said. “The last I heard, he and that former Secretary of DHS got to-
gether as security consultants. You know that the Secretary resigned because of that
deal don’t you?”

511
“I hadn’t heard that, no,” Derek admitted.

“Seems like he told the President that it wasn’t his fault that everything got screwed up
and the President asked for his resignation,” Bill said. “The General told me that the
Secretary thought whoever was behind that deal was smart and he sort of admired
them because they didn’t kill any of his ATF agents.”

“That would mean that the Secretary assumed that whoever was behind Mt. Weather
was involved in those attacks in Kentucky and Tennessee?” Derek asked.

“I never thought about it,” Bill said, “But when you put it like that, yes, I’d guess so. An-
yway to finish the story, apparently the Secretary told the President that if he could find
the guys, he’d join them.”

“And the General?” Derek asked, “What would he do?”

“When he was still a Colonel on active duty, he would have arrested them,” Bill related,
“But now that he’s retired, I think he’d give them a pass.”

“Well Bill that’s all very interesting,” Derek said “But what makes you so certain that
those are real tanks?”

“‘Cause, that Ma-Deuce up on top is real, Derek,” Bill laughed, “And you well know it.”

“You don’t think it’s a demilled machine gun, huh?” Derek asked.

“Demilled machine guns would have the barrel welded shut and the firing pin removed,
Derek, at the very minimum,” Bill said, “All it would take to fire that weapon is a box of
.50 cal ammo. By the way, where is your father?”

“I don’t know,” Derek replied, “I haven’t seen him in a while (2 hours). So where do you
stand with regard to my father and his alleged crimes?”

“Them three old men have big ones,” Bill laughed, “I’d probably fight for them. The
Colonel said they were the same as us, supporting and defending the Constitution.
Why?”

“Just curious,” Derek said.

Derek shared what he’d learned from the Sergeant Major with Clarence, Ron and his
Dad. Gary suggested that Derek take an informal poll among the residents and find out
what their attitudes were with respect to the three of them. Derek did just that. A couple
of the vet’s thought it was a shame that the FEMA guards had been killed at Mt. Weath-
er, but even they agreed with the majority that if they ever had to go into combat, they

512
follow those three old men if they could ever find them. Derek talked with Bill again and
asked the SM if he knew how to get in touch with the General. Bill whipped out one of
the General’s business cards and gave it to Derek who gave it to Gary who faxed it to
Jim in West Virginia. Gary suggested the Jim check the General and his partner out and
see how they felt about the Freedom Riders. If they really were pro FR, maybe they
would like to spend some time at the resort, courtesy of the owners.

Washington…

“Thank you for seeing me General,” Jim said.

“What can I do for you Mr. Roland?” retired General John Robins asked.

“Maybe it’s what the Government Improvement Group can do for you General,” Jim re-
plied. “I understand that you were the Colonel in charge of the Mt. Weather rescue?”

“Yes but what does that have to do with anything?” John asked.

“Maybe nothing General,” Jim said. “GIG owns a company resort up near Mt. Weather
in the West Virginia area. The name of the resort is the Mt. Weather Resort, perhaps
you’ve heard of us?”

“I can’t say as I have. Call me John, please,” John replied.

“Well, some of your troops checked out our resort during that fracas up there,” Jim said,
so I thought that you might have heard of the place.”

“We checked out a lot of places in a 50 mile radius Jim, all the way back to Washing-
ton,” John answered. “What is this about?”

“Do you remember a Sergeant Major by the name of Bill Jefferson?” Jim asked.

“Bill, sure, he was in charge of cutting off those welds. Say what does this have to do
with anything that happened at Mt. Weather?” John asked, becoming very curious.

“The Sergeant Major moved into a development out in California recently named Free-
dom Village,” Jim explained. “Anyway, the Corporation that owns that development is
distantly related to the GIG; common ownership interests or something. The Sergeant
Major mentioned to one of the employees of Freedom Village that you respected those
three old codgers who were allegedly responsible for that whole mess. As it happens,
the common ownership interest also holds those men in high regard and they suggest-
ed that you might want to enjoy a week at the resort at their expense. They also men-
tioned that your partner was the Secretary of DHS for a while, I believe he might have
similar feelings and if he did, he would be welcome to spend a week at the resort too.”

“Let me get this straight Jim,” John said, “A corporation in California who has an owner-

513
ship interest in a corporation in West Virginia has invited me to spend a week at a West
Virginia resort as their guests because I said something to a resident in that California
community that was complimentary of the three guys behind the whole thing?”

“Actually it’s a Nevada corporation with an interest in a Virginia corporation, but other
than that, you have a good grasp on the situation,” Jim said.

“And this is because I have a grudging respect for Gary Olsen, Ron Green and Clar-
ence Rawlings, right?” John said. “What’s the name of these principals?”

“Well, it isn’t Olsen, Green and Rawlings,” Jim said, “I only know one name, John C.
Hays. He seems to be the power behind the scenes.”

“And my partner, Raymond Marshall, the former head of ATF and one time Secretary of
DHS is invited if he shares the same views?” Robins asked. “Do you have any idea how
ludicrous this whole thing sounds?”

“General Robins,” Jim said, “I’m just the manager of a resort in West Virginia and I gave
up trying to figure out the workings of the owners of the GIG a long time ago. Shall I tell
them that you’re not interested?”

“Could you excuse me for a few minutes Jim?” John asked.

“Sure General,” Jim said.

“Why don’t you help yourself to some coffee and I’ll be back in a few minutes?” John
suggested.

“Thank you sir, I’ll be right here,” Jim said.

A few minutes later…

“Jim Roland, meet Raymond Marshall,” John said.

“Pleased to meet you Mr. Marshall,” Jim acknowledged.

“What’s the catch Mr. Roland?” Ray Marshall asked.

“Excuse me sir, catch?” Jim asked.

“You heard me Mr. Roland, what’s the quid pro quo?” Marshall said.

“Well, the principal Mr. Hays does have one minor favor to ask,” Jim admitted.

“I knew it. What would that be Mr. Roland?” Marshall asked.

514
“Well, if either of you gentlemen find any shortcomings in the resort, Mr. Hays would like
you to be honest and recommend improvements,” Jim explained. “And if you really en-
joy the visit, he’d like to request an endorsement, if you would be willing.”

515
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 14 – You’re Kidding, Right?

“An endorsement?” Marshall said, “Did I hear you right?”

“Yes sir, recommendations for improvements and an endorsement, but only if you like
the resort,” Jim replied.

“Ever hear the expression that if it sounds too good to be true it is?” Marshall asked Jim.

“Yes sir,” Jim said, “And if you really like the place, I’ve been instructed to sell you a
membership at half the going rate, if you’d like one.”

“So it is an advertising promotion?” Robins asked.

“Yes sir,” Jim replied, “But you are under no obligation to buy a membership unless you
really chose to. We don’t have any salesmen.”

“Thank you Mr. Roland,” Robins said, “We’ll get back to you.”

“You have my card gentlemen,” Jim said, “You may get our message center. Let me
know either way and I’ll get back to you to work out the final details.”

Freedom Village…

It should be noted in passing that when the SM refused to drop the subject of the tanks
being real, Derek gave Bill ‘the look’. It was that private message used by long time ser-
vicemen that essentially said, ‘you’re right, but you don’t want to know’. Bill got the mes-
sage and dropped the subject. When Derek later asked for the General’s business card,
Bill put 2 and 2 together and inspected the other equipment on display. Those Paladins
were real enough and the M-1117’s shared the same quality, genuineness. The DPV’s
were apparently homemade, but they were faithful duplications right down to the gun
mounts. The only thing different about them was the American made diesel engines and
an extra radio mount. Bill recognized the radio mount as being similar to the mounts
used sometimes in civilian vehicles to quickly mount and dismount a radio to prevent it
from being stolen.

Bill Jefferson was about to drop the whole matter when he remembered Colonel Robins
saying that he had issued equipment to the three old guys and it included equipment
just like the stuff on display, except for the DPV’s. Bill hadn’t made SM by going around
stirring the crap and he wasn’t about to do that now. Neither was he one to open his
mouth when it was better to just keep it shut. Besides, where would he and Myrna, his
wife, have ever gotten a new triplewide at such a good price and at only 5% interest?
Bill knew all about biting the hand that fed him. He was, nevertheless, a curious man
and he made it his business to learn more about Freedom Village. The prices in the
stores, he noticed, while a bit above PX prices, were substantially below MSRP. He also
noticed that the cigarettes, while again higher than the PX, were absent the state tax

516
stamps just like the smokes at the PX, as was the liquor and everything else.

Bill talked with one of his new friends, who had been a supply Master Sergeant before
he retired. The new friend worked part time in one of the warehouses and made the
casual observation that if the Army had had a material handling setup like the one in this
warehouse, his life would have been a whole lot easier. He also made a passing com-
ment that there were enough goods in that warehouse to last for a full year, and it was
just the dry goods warehouse. And the more Bill snooped, the stranger this place
seemed to be. A lot of the retirees were working part time at the various facilities around
Freedom Village. He decided to check with the property office to see what else he could
learn. When he walked in, the receptionist, a middle-aged woman named Patti said, ‘the
job applications are over there’ and barely gave him a second glance. Bill picked up an
application, folded it and stuck it in his pocket, and then left.

When he got home, Bill looked over the ‘job application’. It wasn’t like any job applica-
tion he’d ever seen. It asked for your MOS/AFSC/Rating, wanted you to detail your
combat experience and so forth. It was more like a questionnaire you’d expect to have
to fill out if you applied for one of those jobs in the ads in ‘Soldier of Fortune’ magazine.
Bill decided to track Derek down the next day and ask some penetrating questions. He
never got the chance. After dinner, Myrna answered the door.

“Bill, someone to see you,” Myrna said.

“Hi Bill,” Derek greeted him, “Fill out the job application yet?”

“I looked it over Derek,” Bill said. “Come in, take a load off. Coffee?”

“Sure, black,” Derek replied.

“That’s quite the application form,” Bill observed returning with the coffee. “Reads like a
merc job resume. And, I looked over the rest of that equipment in that display, it’s all re-
al.”

“True,” Derek replied. “That’s the stuff the Army issued my Dad and the others. Well,
except for the DPV’s. They had them built.”

“You admit it?” Bill responded, shocked.

“You’ve checked out every facet of this operation Bill,” Derek said, “What is your im-
pression?”

“It looks like a survivalist’s nirvana, Derek” Bill replied, “Right down to the one year sup-
ply of goods for the stores. Of course I didn’t get a chance to check out all of the ware-
houses.”

“There’s a one year supply of everything Bill,” Derek said.

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“Your dad and his friends run this place?” Bill asked.

“It’s run by a guy named John C. Hays,” Derek replied. “And a couple of his friends.”

“One of them happen to be a tall, thin black man?” Bill asked. “Maybe in his mid-70’s?”

“So, why don’t you get that job application filled out and we’ll see if we can’t find a part
time job for you,” Derek suggested. “A guy makes just enough on those jobs to pay his
house payment each month.”

Washington…

“This is John Robins,” John spoke into the answering machine. “My partner and I would
like to take you up on that offer of a week’s free stay at that resort of yours. Call me
back.”

Jim grinned as he listened to the message on the machine. Before that week was over,
they’d know everything they ever wanted to know about the General and his partner. He
sent the boys out in California an email telling them that the General had taken the bait.
If everything were copasetic, they’d set the hook and reel the two men in.

Freedom Village…

“So, Derek,” Gary said, “How did it go with SM Jefferson?”

“He’s pretty sharp Dad,” Derek said, “I’d say that he just about figured the whole thing
out.”

“He has, has he?” Ron commented. “Well if he’s as smart as all that, maybe he should
be in charge of our security.”

“How is the construction coming?” Derek asked.

“Well, the biodiesel plant is online, but until that crop matures, the only thing we have to
convert is the used vegetable oils we’re picking up in the area,” Gary said, “And that
doesn’t really amount to all that much. Once we can start extracting vegetable oils from
the crop, we will start producing all of the fuel we need. The wind turbines and solar ar-
ray are finished, so we have enough electricity to sell to the utility company. Your broth-
er has finished his project, too. I don’t know how he does it, Derek, I really don’t. But, we
have everything we need.”

“The last of the houses is in and we’re at 75% occupancy,” Derek reported.

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“We need to get to full population fairly soon,” Gary said. “I don’t like the news coming
out of the Middle East one bit. And I have a funny feeling; it’s like we’re due for another
round of terrorist attacks. I think that this country has been through enough. Between
the Clark affair, that war of Edward’s with the Chinese and all of that government mess-
ing with the Constitution, the US has earned a rest.”

“Well, we have a Republican President and a Republican Congress so maybe things

will settle down,” Derek suggested.

“Like hell Derek,” Gary said, “He’ll probably just wait until his second term and declare
war on someone.”

“You know Dad, for a 70-yead old man, you still have the fire,” Derek said. “Give the guy
a break.”

“Probably too many years of reading all of those survivalist stories, son,” Gary admitted.
“Just because we’re getting too old to fight doesn’t mean we’re too old to be concerned.
Anyway, the government is paying for the whole show. We put some of our money into
some of those foreign investments and they’re paying unbelievable interest rates. We’re
earning money at about the same rate as we’re spending it.”

Mt. Weather Resort…

“As you can see John, It isn’t a large property, but we have plenty of recreational oppor-
tunities and guests can ride the ATV’s in the surrounding area. We’re thinking of acquir-
ing more land so that we have our own hunting preserve,” Jim explained.

“How did you happen to come up with the name Mt. Weather Resort?” John asked. “Mt.
Weather is in Bluemont, Virginia.”

“Actually, it’s not all that far by ATV John,” Jim replied. “GIG bought this Lodge shortly
before all those goings on at Mt. Weather as a corporate retreat. But, they decided to
turn it into a commercial venture and capitalize on the fact that the Lodge isn’t all that far
from Mt. Weather.”

“Do you have a lot of members?” John asked.

“Yes and no,” Jim responded. “All of the residents of Freedom Village out in California
have a membership by virtue of being residents of that community. Like I told you, there
is a corporate link. But, from time to time, we sell a membership to like-minded individu-
als.”

“What do you mean by like-minded individuals?” Ray Marshall asked.

“The organization is fairly conservative politically and is a strong believer is supporting

and defending the Constitution,” Jim replied. “And, frankly, most of the people involved

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have a bit of a survivalist mentality. This resort is stocked with enough supplies to sup-
port a full contingent of guests for a full year.”

“So, it really is sort of like Mt. Weather,” Ray observed.

“In some ways, I suppose,” Jim acknowledged, “But we don’t have armed guards or an-
ything.”

“It sounds to me like you know quite a bit about Mt. Weather,” John said.

“Only what I read on the Internet John,” Jim replied.

“You know Ray,” John said, “This place is mighty peculiar. It would have made a perfect
operating base for those people who attacked Mt. Weather.

“I told that butthead Costello that if I got out of Mt. Weather, I was going to retire and
hunt whoever did it down. But, it wasn’t to turn them in; it was to join them. They’re ob-
viously smart, resourceful and can put a plan together.”

“It’s funny you should say that Ray,” John said, “I recall a conversation with SM Jeffer-
son where I sort of said the same thing. The only people hurt in that whole mess were
some of your FEMA guards, as I recall.”

“They were more like the Gestapo, John,” Ray replied. “If I had stayed on, I was going
to make some major changes to the whole DHS.”

“Really? What for example?” John asked. ‘We’ve never discussed this before.”

“The original charter of DHS was one single overriding responsibility: to make America
more secure. Along with the sweeping transformation within the FBI, the establishment
of the Department of Defense’s US Northern Command, and the creation of the multi-
agency Terrorist Threat Integration Center and Terrorist Screening Center, America was
supposed to be better prepared to prevent, disrupt, and respond to terrorist attacks than
ever before,” Ray explained. “Somewhere along the line, that all changed. They ended
up establishing all of those centers, you remember, the ones that were blown up on the
college campuses. And, FEMA got a big head and decided to do more than just man-
age emergencies.”

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 15 – New Members

Freedom Village…

“And Jim thinks that they’re ok?” Ron asked.

“They seem to have put it together like SM Jefferson did, although they haven’t said an-
ything,” Gary reported.

“I don’t know about this,” Clarence objected. “If we invite them in and they turn out to be
something other than we expect…”

“We’ll have to introduce them to the Cemetery,” Gary finished the sentence.

“Ok Gar-Bear, but let’s do this in stages,” Ron suggested. “Have Derek make an offer to
SM Jefferson to be the head of security and bring him fully into the loop. If that works
out ok, we’ll bring the General and that ATF guy in.”

“So there you have it Bill,” Derek said, “You’ve been offered the head of security posi-
tion.”

“But that’s your job,” Bill protested, “What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to work on pulling this group of people into a cohesive unit,” Derek replied.
“That will be part of your job too Bill. Now, if you’re in, there are a lot of things you need
to see. Otherwise, we’ll just stop right here and you won’t need to know anything more.”

“I’m not much of a desk pounder,” Bill said, “But ok, I’m in.”

“Good, let me show you the Underground City,” Derek said.

“What Underground City?” Bill asked.

“It’s an old mine that we equipped as a shelter Bill,” Derek said, “Everything you see in
Freedom Village is duplicated inside the mine.”

“That means that you have a 2 year supply of everything,” Bill whistled, “And does it
have its own generating equipment and everything besides?”

“Yep. Plus our armory,” Derek explained.

“Armory?” Bill asked. “Well I guess that makes sense, it wouldn’t do you much good to
have those tanks and equipment without munitions, would it?”

521
“Bill, we have enough equipment to fully outfit 3 companies of infantry plus the crews for
all of that military equipment,” Derek explained. “You’ll have to meet my brother, he
gives a whole new meaning to the term scrounger.”

“When do I get to meet your Dad?” Bill asked.

“You already have, Bill,” Derek laughed, “You just didn’t recognize him.”

“You mean…” Bill started to say.

“Bill, John Coffee Hays was one of the original Texas Rangers back in the early 1800’s,”
Derek said. “Dad just liked the name and took it as one of his several aliases.”

“So the other two guys are Clarence and Ron, huh?” Bill asked. “Well, I sort of figured
that one guy was Clarence, but I thought your father was taller.”

“6’6” and all muscle?” Derek said, “Nope 5’5” and old. And they are rich that much is
true. They’ve been collecting rewards on themselves for quite a while.”

“And they were behind the Mt. Weather thing?” Bill asked.

“Probably everything you’ve ever heard about them is true and more,” Derek said. “In
the early days, back when Clark took over the country, they didn’t play nice. But, after
they took out the federal building in LA, they lost their taste for bloodshed. Since then,
the group has only killed out of absolute necessity.”

“But why the buildup now?” Bill asked. “We have a pro-gun Republican President, a
Republican Congress and things are on a pretty even keel.”

“My Dad seems to think we’re in for another round of terrorist attacks,” Derek replied.

“You mean from someone other than the Palmdale Militia turned PFLA turned Freedom
Riders, huh?” Bill half asked.

“He thinks the Muslims have had about all they can take of Israel and they blame us, so
he thinks they’re going to attack the US,” Derek responded.

“I thought that all ended when we pulled out troops out of Iraq,” Bill said.

“We left that country in one hell of a mess, Bill,” Derek replied. “And then those Muslim
fundamentalists took over the democratic government we were trying to establish and,
well hell, you know the story.”

“President Santorum will never let them get away with anything like that,” Bill suggested.

“Bill, DHS is a joke, you know that. All the President can do is react. Dad thinks that

522
Santorum won’t start a war with the Muslims like Bush did,” Derek commented.

“Whatever happened to Bush?” Bill asked.

“He’s out of the hospital and doing well from what I understand,” Derek replied.

Washington…

“And you think that the Muslims are staging for an attack on this country?” Santorum
asked.

“Mr. President, there is every indication that they are, yes,” Condi Rice replied. “But with
no better intelligence than we have, we don’t have any idea what they’re planning. It
could be anything from hitting us with nukes, taking out the power grid or the pipelines,
hijacking and crashing aircraft to something as simple as stirring up a series of racial
incidents and starting a black vs. white race war.”

“Do you have any recommendations?” the President asked.

“It’s pretty hard to make recommendations when we don’t know what they’re planning,
Mr. President,” Condi replied, “But you ought to be working with DHS on that and may-
be they ought to raise the Threat Level a notch or two. I do not believe that Green is an
appropriate level. It should be Yellow or perhaps Orange.”

“OK, I talk to the Secretary about that Condi thanks,” Santorum said, “Anything else?”

“No sir,” Condi replied.

“Would you ask Rob to step in on your way out, please?” Santorum requested.

“Yes Sir,” Condi acknowledged.

“Yes Mr. President?” Rob asked.

“Have you been keeping an eye on that Freedom Village out in California?” Santorum
asked.

“Yes Sir. They have completed construction and are at about 95% occupancy as of the
moment,” Rob reported.

“And do we have any more information on them?” the President asked.

“The FBI did a drive by observation Mr. President,” Rob said, “They are flying the Gads-
den flag, the US flag and a California flag. And the FBI seems to think that the display of

523
tanks and other military equipment is not a display of fake equipment, but real equip-
ment.”

“Is it that PFLA group?” Santorum asked.

“They call themselves the Freedom Riders now,” Rob said, “But we think so, yes. They
seem to be affiliated with a resort in West Virginia called the Mt. Weather Resort, too.”

“What do you know about that place?” Santorum asked.

“Not much Mr. President,” Rob admitted. “They had only 10 acres, but recently bought
another 1,000 acres, give or take. Claimed that they intend to turn it into a private game
preserve and hunting club. They apparently have 2 new members; do you remember
Ray Marshall and General John Robins?”

“Marshall was the ATF guy who was the Secretary of DHS for a while wasn’t he?” San-
torum said “And there was a Colonel Robins in charge of the rescue at Mt. Weather.”

“Same guy. Costello promoted him to Brigadier General after the event, but he retired,”
Rob explained. “Marshall was the Secretary of DHS during the crisis. He apparently re-
signed during the crisis and eventually the two men got together and formed a security
consulting business.”

“These Freedom Riders you mentioned; what can you tell me about them?” Santorum
asked.

“They seem to have their roots in that Palmdale Militia group,” Rob explained. “Then
they operated under the PFLA name for a while and reappeared later as the Freedom
Riders.”

“Can we connect them to any wrong doing?” Santorum asked.

“No sir,” Rob replied, “But that rash of armory thefts started and ended about the time
they were starting up Freedom Village.”

“But that stopped didn’t it?” Santorum observed.

“Yes Sir, right after you asked me about it,” Rob acknowledged. “Whoever it was stole
enough equipment for about 3 companies of infantry and enough munitions for the next
World War. And then, it just stopped. As I told you, the FBI didn’t have a clue and ATF
never came up with anything either.”

“Anyone ever think to search that Freedom Village?” Santorum asked.

“No sir, we didn’t even have enough suspicions to act under the USA Patriot Act and
you know how low the threshold is under that law.” Rob reported.

524
“Well, if it is those three guys from Palmdale behind all of this, we may need their help,”
Santorum observed.

“Sir?” Rob asked.

“Condi thinks there’s something brewing with the Muslim’s, but she has no idea what,”
Santorum explained. “If she’s right and that bunch of guys rides to the country’s rescue,
I’ll probably end up having to pardon them for all of their sins, real and imagined.”

“A lot of people think they were behind that attack on Mt. Weather, Mr. President,” Rob
noted. “Apparently, there was a break in their numbers after that. Some of the group
moved to Wyoming.”

“Who were they?” Santorum asked.

“A retired Army Sergeant Major named Raymond ‘Ray’ Benton, his wife Stacy, his step-
son Ryan who was also in the Army and liaison between group and the Army for a while
and his wife Jennifer, a doctor,” Rob said consulting his notes. “Anyway they broke off
about the time that Freedom Village started up. Ryan was the one who turned the three
men in and collected that $250 million reward. We checked their bank records but could
only account for about $27 million of the money. The daughter-in-law, Jennifer used a
lot of the money to open up a medical clinic in Jackson.”

“Interesting,” Santorum commented, “So in effect, they have 3 locations, one in West
Virginia, one in Wyoming and the community in California.”

“There is nothing to connect those people with the California or West Virginia opera-
tions, sir,” Rob pointed out.

“There isn’t any hard evidence connecting anyone to anything is there Rob?” Santorum
grinned.

“No sir, I’m afraid not.” Rob admitted.

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 16 – Labor Day Picnic

Tehran, Iran…

Abdullah bin Laden had just finished explaining his plans for the attack on America to
the Assembly of Experts. The attack financed by his father in 2001 was a dismal failure
in many ways. Rather than bringing the American government to its knees, they had
managed to kill only about 3,000 Americans. Perhaps if that 4th plane hadn’t crashed in
the field in Pennsylvania, it might have been different, or, perhaps not. Since 2003, vari-
ous splinter groups and al Qaeda cells had been embedding people in the US. Many
died in Clark’s bombings and the Chinese attacks, but it was only a setback, not an end
of the plan. Now, they were ready to strike. It would have been nice to have some of
those Russian portable nuclear weapons, but they were going to do without. His great-
est concern was that the US had already experienced two major disruptions and that
the American people would endure for quite a while before they felt Allah’s wrath. On
the other hand, taking down the pipeline system, the electrical power grids and their
transportation system simultaneously would cause chaos and over time bring the infi-
dels down, this time for good.

Had the Assembly of Experts acted sooner, he would have launched his assault on
America’s infrastructure on their Independence Day and shown them what it was like to
be independent of electrical power, natural gas and water. His attack was intended to
poison water supplies, take out select portions of the electrical grid and disrupt delivery
of hydrocarbons through America’s network of pipelines. This wasn’t any feeble attempt
to inconvenience the Americans either. If the plan worked, it might take the Americans
years to catch all of his people. The goal was to bring the systems down and keep them
down.

Washington…

“I don’t care what your intelligence reports are telling you Mr. Secretary,” the President
snapped, “Condi says that we should be at Yellow or Orange. So I’ll grant you a single
compromise, this one time. You raise the threat level to Yellow immediately.”

“But Mr. President, next Monday is Labor Day,” the Secretary of DHS insisted.

“I don’t care if it screws up every celebration planned for Labor Day,” Santorum re-
sponded. “If I were the terrorists, I’d strike on a holiday. There would be large concen-
trations of people attending parades and community events. It would be awfully easy to
hurt a lot of people at one time.”

“This will cause big backups at the airports, Mr. President,” the Secretary insisted. “But
it’s your political future that’s at stake, not mine.”

“If you would have asked me 3 months before the election, I would have told you I
couldn’t win,” Santorum said, “But I did win and I’m going to do the job the American

526
people expect of me. And you, Mr. Secretary, are going to do the job they expect of you.
Even if we were at threat level Red, some terrorist activity would be possible. And it
could be anything, so don’t slack off in any area.”

“Yes sir,” the Secretary grumbled.

Freedom Village…

“Since there are only 4 empty homes, Derek, that puts us at 98% occupancy,” Gary
beamed. “You can leave those four homes empty for contingencies. How is Bill working
out?”

“He’s a real winner Dad,” Derek said, “Between Bill and the others, we have almost a
company of infantry and the vehicles manned. The supplies were restocked last week
so between the shelter and the warehouses, we’re good for a 2-year period. We re-
planted and they’re almost done processing the canola oil into biodiesel.”

“I never thought I’d see the day where it paid to have all electric homes, but with the
supplemental solar heating of the water and the turbines and array, the only propane we
need is for our grills,” Gary grinned.

“We have a 1,000 gallon refill tank for the propane bottles, too,” Derek said.

“Good because we’re planning a big shindig for Labor Day,” Gary grinned.

“We gonna have some chicken, or are you just going to do steaks and burgers and
dogs, Gary?” Clarence asked.

“Clarence, if you want grilled chicken we’ll have several grills going with nothing but
chicken. Will that do?” Gary asked.

“We gonna have watermelon, too?” Clarence asked.

“Yes and greens and grits if you want them, partner,” Ron laughed.

“Don’t want no grits, but greens would be nice,” Clarence responded, “They go good
with chicken.”

“I’ll take your word for that Clarence,” Gary said. “I’m going to stick with hot dogs and
potato salad.”

“Where is that new doctor we hired from?” Ron asked, “And what kind of name is Eti-
had?”

“It’s Persian, or Iranian if you prefer, Ron,” Gary explained “His father and Bill Joseph-
son were our doctors for years.”

527
“Josephson sounds American,” Ron said.

“It was the anglicized version of his first name,” Gary replied. “And the middle initial was
his first name. I forget what he told me about where the William came from.”

“Anyone heard from Ray and Ryan?” Derek asked.

“They’re doing great,” Gary said, “Ray called the other day. They’re thinking of coming
down here for a visit one of these days. Jennifer’s clinic is up and running. And Ray and
Ryan have built their own little community about 30 miles northwest of Jackson Hole.
Sort of a miniature version of Freedom Village.”

“I sure miss having them here,” Clarence commented.

“Like I said Clarence, having them in Wyoming is an investment in the future,” Gary re-
minded his friend, “Maybe if TSHTF, we’ll have to have a place up north where we can
lay low or operate out of. Who knows?”

Jackson…

Ray had named their development Benton Village. Money wasn’t much of an issue so
they started out with a full section of land, 640 acres. Three quarters of the land was re-
served for farming. On the other 160 acres, they began to build a community of their
own. They first put in outbuildings like a barn and machine shed. Then, they dug a 6”
well. Ray ordered several truckloads of hay and then bought livestock. He got dairy
cows, feeder cattle, a bull, sows and a boar and chickens. While the contractor was put-
ting in the farm buildings, Ray hired a contractor to begin putting in basements. When
the construction contractor finished the barn, machine shed and other buildings, Ray got
him started building houses.

Since there wasn’t a mine on the property, Ray put in a large community building, or
commons, with a basement of its own. Meanwhile Ryan had located a diesel generator
for backup power and had the local distributor put in a large underground diesel tank.
The power company ran lines to the development for about $10 thousand a mile and an
electrician hooked up the electricity and wired in the generator and automatic transfer
switches. The standby generator was in the basement of the common building.

It got pretty cold in the Jackson Hole area during the winter so they put in a propane
tank large enough to service the planned 25 homes for a full year or more. They used
propane fueled stoves, hot water heaters, furnaces and dryers and found that they
could get them inexpensively if they bought enough for all 25 homes in one purchase.
The same thing applied for the lumber to build the homes. While Ray and Ryan were
talking to the lumberyard about getting the lumber for one home, the owner said that if
they contracted for the lumber for all 25 homes, he could make a volume purchase and
pass the savings on to them.

528
They finished building Benton Village just about the same time that Jennifer finished her
clinic and they began to sell the homes to retired military and retired police officers. Af-
ter they had most of the homes sold, Ray happened to call Gary and visit with him. Gary
told him how well Freedom Village had turned out and Ray suggested that perhaps Sta-
cy, Ryan Jennifer and he could visit sometime soon. This was the Friday before Labor
Day.

Ray and Ryan had brought their own guns and a small assortment of the M16’s and
MP5’s. They hadn’t wanted to run the guys down in California short on their arms, so
they only took enough to equip the four of them with one of each of the weapons. Stacy
preferred the M-9 and so did Ryan, so rather than taking the 10mm weapons, they took
the 9mm MP5SD5’s that Gary didn’t care for. They were pretty well set for guns and
ammo. The M16/M203’s were probably more than they needed, but they were sort of
comfort guns. Ray didn’t bring any of the hand grenades, the 40mm grenades for the
M203’s were enough. But he did bring their Interceptor vests and the plates as a pre-
caution. Most of the people who bought homes from them had their own assortment of
firearms anyway, so neither Ray nor Ryan felt the need to equip the residents.

Freedom Village…Labor Day…2013…

They started off early in the morning setting up the picnic tables, gas grills and icing
down the beverages and watermelon for later that day. Ron was in charge of cooking
the steaks, as always, and Clarence volunteered to cook the chicken so that it was
‘cooked right’. Since Gary was the hotdog lover, he volunteered to do those and Derek
said he would handle the burgers.

Several of the other residents pitched in and before long, everything was ready for the
picnic. There was ice-cold beer for anyone who wanted a few, and soft drinks, iced tea
and lemonade for the people who didn’t drink and the kids. Several women had gotten
together and whipped up large batches of potato salad, pasta salad, and relish trays.
They started cooking around 2pm and by 3:30pm everyone had filled a plate and they
were sitting around visiting and just enjoying the day. They ate until most everyone was
bursting a seam and they moved on to the watermelon. After they finished, they started
to clean up the mess and put the food away. It had been a pleasant day and it appeared
that everyone had enjoyed himself or herself.

Gary flipped on the TV to catch the news. CNN was broadcasting what appeared to be
news of some sort of disaster or something, but Gar-Bear didn’t pay much attention, he
was more interested in playing games on his computer. The phone rang and Sharon
answered it.

“Gary, Ron seems to be pretty excited, he said for you to quote drag your sorry butt
over there end quote,” Sharon said. “Tell Ronald to watch his language, would you?”

“Ok dear,” Gary said, “I’ll go see what is so important. Must be about the disaster they

529
were talking about on CNN.”

“What disaster?” Sharon asked.

“I really didn’t pay any attention, something about an airplane crash or something,” Gary
explained. “You might want to put it back on and see what it’s all about, I’m going over
to Ron’s.”

Washington…White House Situation Room…

“How many aircraft were involved?” Santorum asked.

“It appears that 6 aircraft were hijacked Mr. President,” the Secretary of DHS said, “We
scrambled fighters and all six planes had to be shot down when they headed for major
cities.”

“Any survivors?” Santorum asked.

“It doesn’t appear so, no.”

“What about the power outages?” Santorum asked.

“Nationwide outage, I’m afraid and these were well executed attacks,” the Secretary
said. “Several power plants were seriously damaged as were portions of the grid. But it
gets worse Mr. President. We don’t have a count yet, but that pipeline hub in Kansas
City as well as several other pipelines were damaged.”

“Do you have any more good news for me?” Santorum asked, “No nukes?”

“No sir, no nukes,” the Secretary replied, “But the extent of the outages and the damage
will require extreme measures on your part.”

“Like what for instance?” Santorum asked.

“I recommend you declare martial law and suspend Posse Comitatus to begin with,” the
Secretary responded, “And of course you will want to transfer power to FEMA.”

“The people didn’t elect FEMA to run this country and until they do, I’ll take only such
action as is necessary,” Santorum snapped, “We will declare martial law for tonight only
and assess the situation. I will not suspend Posse Comitatus or Habeas Corpus or any
other provision of the law. And Mr. Secretary, if you can’t do the job you’re supposed to
do, I will find someone who can.”

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 17 – Red Alert

One of the problems, at least from my perspective, was that the bin Laden family never
actually participated in any of their skullduggery. Hell, Osama didn’t even plan the World
Trade building attack in 2001; he just paid for it. And, Abdullah bin Laden was no fool
either; he was in Tehran. He had able Lieutenants to direct the US operations. Every-
one gave far too much credit to the Laden or bin Laden or whatever family. Actually
those Palestinian suicide bombers deserved more respect than that family; at least the
bombers believed in their cause enough to die for it.

Freedom Village…

“What the hell is so important Ronald?” Gary asked, “I was kicked back playing games
on my computer.”

“You remember telling Clarence something about TSHTF?” Ron asked.

“Yeah, so what?” Gary asked.

“Duck,” Ron said using an attention getting tone.

“What the hell happened and how come we didn’t know anything about it?” Gary asked.

“We didn’t know anything about it because we’re totally independent in this community
of ours,” Ron explained. “As to what happened, as near as I can tell 6 jets were hijacked
and had to be shot down, the electrical grid is down nationwide and several pipelines
were attacked.”

“Probably Kansas City,” Gary said, “It’s a hub.”

“Kansas City and several other locations,” Ron confirmed. “The only thing that wasn’t
attacked was the water supply.”

“No nukes?” Gary asked.

“Not as far as I know, no,” Ron said.

“Well, have Derek put us on Red Alert for now,” Gary suggested. “Have them fire up
those tanks and M-1117’s and put up a protective shield around the Village. We’d better
get everyone armed, too.”

“I’ll get Derek and Bill on it,” Ron agreed. “What now Jefe?”

“I supposed that we’d better just sit tight until we get confirmation that those ragheads
are behind all of this,” Gary chuckled, “Then, we’re going to kick butt and take names.”

531
“Hey guys,” Clarence said, “Did you hear the news?”

“We’re going on Red Alert Clarence,” Ron replied, “And old Gar-Bear says we’re going
to kick butt and take names.”

“What we need to know their names for?” Clarence asked.

“Go get your FAL, MP5 and your other equipment, pal,” Gary suggested, “It’s going to
be a long night.”

“Ron did you try to raise Ray on the radio?” Gary asked.

“What for?” Ron replied, “The phones are still up.”

“How did they manage to overlook the phones?” Gary asked. “I’ll call Ray; you get busy
with Derek and Bill.”

Sometime between when Ron had checked the phones and when Gary picked up the
phone to call Ray, someone took out several telephone switching centers. The phone
line was dead. Gary got Ray on the satellite phone and asked what their situation was.

“We’re as snug as a bug in a rug Gary,” Ray announced. “Jennifer stayed in Jackson to
take care of any people that need immediate medical treatment and then Ryan will bring
her back here.”

“I put the Village on Red alert and we’re bringing out the big guns,” Gary explained. “If
you need anything, just call.”

“I will do that Gary, although by the time you could get here we’d probably have the
problems solved ourselves,” Ray acknowledged.

“Jim this is Gary, how are things at the resort?” Gary asked Jim.

“We’re in good shape Gary, “Ray and John showed up a while ago so everything is co-
pasetic.”

“We got all our news off of CNN and FOX, do you know anything more than that?” Gary
asked.

“Not really, no,” Jim replied.

“We’re on Red Alert here, so govern yourselves accordingly,” Gary urged.

“Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition?” Jim asked.

“Something like that, yes,” Gary replied.

532
Washington…White House Situation Room…

Mr. President, I really think everyone should move to Mt. Weather,” the Secretary sug-
gested.

“Why, someone drop a bomb?” Santorum asked.

“Not that I know of, no sir,” the Secretary replied.

“In that case, we’ll be fine right here,” Santorum said. “Did we get martial law declared
and the National Guard out?”

“Yes sir, all of the Governors are turning out their Guards and they’re being sent to the
large cities. But, I really think you should reconsider the martial law decision, we could
have real trouble in some of the big cities.”

“Then I’ll extend martial law if I need to,” Santorum explained. “Why is everyone in such
a rush to take away everyone’s rights? People died to get us these rights and one hell
of a lot more died to keep them for us.”

“There is one other matter, Mr. President,” The Secretary said.

“Well?” Santorum demanded.

“Mr. President, there’s this group out in eastern California with this survivalist communi-
ty,” the Secretary said, “How do we know they’re not behind this?”

“Are you specifically referring to Freedom Village?” Santorum asked.

“Yes sir, I think that those three guys…” the Secretary started to say.

“Are going to bail this country out again, probably,” Santorum laughed. “I had them
checked out. Did you know that they have 3 locations around the country including one
just a few miles from your precious Mt. Weather?”

“Uh, no sir, maybe we should arrest them,” the Secretary suggested.

“On what charge?” Santorum asked. “Did you know that your predecessor Ray Marshall
is part of the group in West Virginia?”

“I didn’t know anything about the group in West Virginia, Mr. President, “But if Ray is
part of the group I suppose not,” the Secretary said.

“And why is that Mr. Secretary, do you think that just because he was the head of DHS
for a few weeks that he’s exempt from the law?” Santorum was on a roll.

533
“Yes Sir, I mean No Sir,” the Secretary responded.

“Is your deputy as dumb as you are?” Santorum asked.

“No Sir, he’s a real sharp fellow,” the Secretary said.

“Good, why don’t you go ask him what you should do next?” Santorum asked rhetorical-
ly.

“But he works for me!” the Secretary protested.

“Not for much longer he doesn’t,” Santorum said, “Tell me what threat level are we on
now?”

“Red of course.”

“Well, you’re a real good barn door closer, I’ll give you that,” Santorum laughed in spite
of himself.

Freedom Village…

“So the phones are out too?” Ron asked.

“Yes, I had to use the sat phone,” Gary replied.

“At least they didn’t get the water supply,” Ron said.

“That’s twice you’ve said that, how do you know?” Gary asked.

“I guess I don’t Gar-Bear,” Ron admitted.

“I hope the White House thinks about that,” Gary observed.

“Well, we have those military radios in storage. We could get Damon to dig one out and
send a message to the military to warn the White House,” Clarence suggested.

“Clarence, you’re a genius,” Gary smiled. “Where’s Damon?”

“He’s with Derek, playing around with that tank,” Clarence said.

“Be right back guys,” Gary announced.

“So, Damon can you get a long range military radio up and running?” Gary asked.

“I suppose, why?” Damon asked.

534
“Get one up and start broadcasting on the Guard frequency,” Gary said, “Warn them
that there is a possibility that the water supplies may have been compromised and ask
them to pass it up the chain of command.”

“Why would they believe me?” Damon asked.

“Tell them the message is from Gary Olsen, Ron Green and Clarence Rawlings, son,”
Gary said. “We may get blamed, but it will be worth it if these terrorists have done
something to the water.”

Damon left to dig around in the Underground City. He’d carefully stored the military
comm gear somewhere in there, if he could just remember where. Eventually, he found
it and had it up and running. He took the most powerful transmitter he had that had the
Guard frequency and began to broadcast a message.

“This is Damon Olsen in Freedom Village. I am broadcasting on the Guard frequency for
any military unit who can receive this transmission. Gary Olsen, Ron Green and Clar-
ence Rawlings suspect that the terrorists may have compromised the water supply. If
you receive this transmission, please forward this message to the National Command
Authority.”

It wasn’t exactly what his Dad had told him but it was close enough. Damon broadcast
the same message every 20 minutes for most of the night. He finally fell asleep at the
transmitter waiting for the next 20-minute interval. Damon received no acknowledge-
ment of his transmission. However, several military receivers heard the transmission
and forwarded up the chain of command to the NCA, President Santorum.

Washington…White House Situation Room…

“Mr. President,” the Chairman said, “We’ve been receiving a strange radio transmission
on the guard frequency once every 20 minutes for several hours.”

“What is the message, General?” Santorum asked.

“I wrote it down for you Mr. President,” the Chairman said, “here.”

“This is Damon Olsen in Freedom Village. I am broadcasting on the Guard frequency for
any military unit who can receive this transmission. Gary Olsen, Ron Green and Clar-
ence Rawlings suspect that the terrorists may have compromised the water supply. If
you receive this transmission, please forward this message to the National Command
Authority.”

“General, get your people to start checking the major water supplies around the coun-
try,” Santorum ordered. “If this warning is correct, we could have a real problem. We’d
better put out a message on the EAS telling everyone to avoid drinking tap water until

535
we’ve tested the water supplies. And get Air Force One ready to fly, I’m going to Cali-
fornia.”

536
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 18 – We’re All In This Together

“But Mr. President, you can’t,” the Chairman said.

“I beg your pardon?” Santorum snapped. “Is the aircraft broken?”

“No sir, what I mean to say is that you shouldn’t leave the White House,” the Chairman
backtracked.

“Do we still have communications between the Situation Room and Air Force One?”
Santorum asked.

“Yes Sir,” the General replied.

“Then get the plane ready, General,” Santorum snapped, again.

Aboard Air Force One, somewhere over the Midwest…

“How are we going to get to Blythe, General?” Santorum asked.

“Mr. President, we’re going to land in Yuma and fly a Marine helicopter to Freedom Vil-
lage,” the General explained.

“General get someone to get a hold of that Olsen boy on the radio,” Santorum directed.
“If I recall, we gave those three men a bunch of Stingers. I don’t want to get my butt
flamed.”

“I’ll get someone on it right away, sir,” the Chairman acknowledged.

Freedom Village…

“This is the US Marine Corps calling Damon Olsen on Guard, do you copy?” the radio
blared.

“Uh, this is Damon Olsen, come back,” Damon replied.

“This is the US Marine Corps, may we have permission to land?” the pilot radioed.

“Standby one,” Damon said.

“Dad, I’ve got the Marine Corps on the Guard frequency, they want permission to land,”
Damon said.

“So give them permission to land Damon,” Gary said.

“What are the Marine Corps doing here?” Clarence asked.

537
“How the hell do I know?” Gary said, “Maybe they want a place to land and wash their
helicopter?”

The chopper pulled in for a smart landing, and an officer got out of the passenger com-
partment.

“Who is Gary Olsen?” the officer asked.

“Who wants to know,” Gary asked back.

“The President of the United States, sir. He’s on his way here to meet with Gary Olsen,”
the officer explained.

“I’m Gary Olsen Captain, but I don’t remember inviting the President here,” Gary
acknowledged.

“I understand it was a spur of the moment decision Mr. Olsen,” the Captain said, “Does
the President’s helicopter have permission to land?”

“Well why not Captain, we have some leftovers from today’s picnic,” Gary laughed.

“That was yesterday’s picnic,” Ron said. “Jeez Gar-Bear, the President of the United
States comes half way across the country to see us and you offer him leftover potato
salad?”

“There’s some chicken left over too, Ron,” Clarence added.

“I wonder what he wants.” Gary speculated. “I guess he must have gotten my message
about the water, huh?”

“Nah, Gar-Bear, he just flew 3,000 miles to get some leftover chicken and potato salad.”
Ron replied sarcastically.

The second Marine helicopter landed and a General and a man they presumed was the
President got out.

“I’m Rick Santorum,” the President said. “Let’s see, your Gary Olsen, your Clarence
Rawlings and that means this other guy must be Ron Green.”

“I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced,” Gary said.

“That’s all right Gary, I’ve read your file,” the President said holding his forefinger and
thumb about 3” apart.

“And yours too guys,” he said holding the finger and thumb the same distance apart.

538
“To what do we owe the pleasure, Mr. President?” Gary asked.

“I got your message and we’re checking the water supplies,” Santorum said. “I wanted
to thank you personally and see this community of yours.”

“It’s kind of dark, Mr. President,” Gary said.

“Say you wouldn’t happen to have any leftovers from your Labor Day picnic, would
you?” Santorum asked, “I haven’t eaten in hours.”

“We got some chicken and potato salad,” Clarence said.

“That would be just fine Clarence, you guys can show me around in the morning,” San-
torum said.

“While you’re out here in California eating leftovers, who is running the country?” Ron
asked.

“I am, aren’t modern communications wonderful?” Santorum smiled.

“Say you wouldn’t happen to have any leftover tanks or artillery or missiles lying around
would you?” Gary asked.

“I suppose that depends upon how good that leftover chicken is,” Santorum laughed.

“Guys, I’m really impressed,” the President said, “Do you have the same setup in West
Virginia and in Wyoming?”

“The Mt. Weather Resort is equipped for survival,” Gary said, “But Ray Benton has his
own operation up in Wyoming.”

“Funded with the reward money Ryan got for turning you in?” Santorum asked.

“As a matter of fact yes,” Gary said. “What about those tanks and artillery and missiles?”

“Why don’t you just steal them the same as you did the rifles and ammunition?” Santo-
rum asked.

“It would be easier if you just gave them to us,” Gary said, “Then you would know for
sure where they are.”

“Anything else guys?” Santorum asked.

539
“Now that you mention it, how’s that Secretary for the Homeland Security Department
working out?” Gary asked.

“Why?” Santorum asked.

“Ray Marshall got a pretty raw deal from that Costello,” Gary said, “And if you’re looking
for someone who knows what they doing, you might look him up.”

“Have someone give a list of what you want to that Marine Corps Captain and I’ll con-
sider your request,” Santorum said.

Washington…White House Situation Room…

“It’s a good thing we checked the water Mr. President,” the Chairman said, “Several of
the major water supplies were contaminated.”

“What’s the situation in the major cities, General?” Santorum asked.

“The National Guard is pretty much keeping a lid on things, although I’d recommend
sending in some regular Army troops into Los Angeles and New York,” the General re-
plied.

“Is there a lot of looting and trouble?” Santorum asked.

“No, but if we want to avoid martial law, a few more troops might help keep the lid on
things, Mr. President.”

“Don’t put in any more than you have to General,” the President directed. “I suppose we
ought to consider this list the Freedom Riders gave us.”

“What do they want?” the General asked.

“Two more M1117’s and spare parts for 4 of the vehicles,” Santorum replied.

“Is that it?” the General asked.

“No, what’s an M-14 mine and a MK3A2 grenade?” Santorum asked.

“Dangerous, but primarily non-lethal weapons, Mr. President,” the General summarized.

“That’s what they want General, 2 M-1117’s, spare parts and the M-14 and MK3A2 gre-
nades,” Santorum said. “Do you have any problem with our giving them these things?”

“Not as long as they use them on the bad guys instead of us, no,” the General replied.

“They saved a lot of lives with that warning General, give them what they want.”

540
“Yes sir,” the General replied.

Per the written list the Freedom Riders had given the Captain, the General had one M-
1117 with spare parts delivered to Wyoming and the same delivered to the Mt. Weather
Resort. The remaining items went to Freedom Village. The terrorists had continued their
strikes, taking down additional pipelines and grid components ahead of the repair at-
tempts. Despite dispatching most of the Army and Marine infantry forces available, the
military was unable to halt the continuing attacks on the infrastructure. The President
had ordered stringent security measures for the airline industry and Amtrak and public
transportation slowly ground to a halt.

Frustrated by the Secretary for Home Security, the President asked Ray Marshall to
come to the White House for a visit. Having had a bad previous experience in the posi-
tion, Marshall didn’t care if he got the job or not. He didn’t pull any punches and he told
the President exactly what mistakes had been made at Mt. Weather and who had made
them, including his shortcomings in the matter. His greatest shortcomings were his fail-
ures to have his people communicate complete information to him and his efforts to try
and please the President rather than do his job. Ray Marshall made no excuses. And,
Ray Marshall got the job for a second time. General John Robins and his wife moved to
Freedom Village.

30Sep13…Freedom Village…

“The problem with the Army,” Bill said, “Is that they don’t think outside of the box.”

“What’s that mean in English?” Clarence asked.

“Improvise. Adapt. Overcome,” Gary said before anyone could reply. “It’s a term they
use to describe people who become such a slave to their computer programs that they
lose the ability to think, Clarence.”

“I couldn’t have explained it better myself, Gary,” Bill said.

“I thought the Army used rifles and tanks, not computers,” Clarence mumbled.

Obviously the Army needed a little help from people who always thought out of the box.

541
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 19 – Outside the Box

The US is a fairly large country and it wasn’t as if the people going around damaging
the infrastructure were wearing signs saying ‘here I am’. On the other hand, the good
guys, aka the Freedom Riders, had plenty of experience doing exactly what these ter-
rorists were doing and they knew how the game was played. The terrorists seemed to
be pretty well organized and well-funded. Hmm, there was something quite familiar
about that too. It was time for a major skull session and the three old geezers called for
a council of war. Gary sent word to Jim for him to drive to California and called Ray on
the sat phone and asked if he and Ryan could make a trip to California.

“These people are doing about what we did folks,” Gary opened the meeting, “So how
do we stop them? They seem to have enough money to move around freely and they
definitely have a well thought out plan.”

“Well, do we have any information on where they’ve hit so far?” Ray asked. “If we had a
specific chronology, we could map it out and pick the targets we would hit next if it was
us doing the terrorism.”

“No, but I expect we could get that information,” Gary said, “Ray Marshall got his old job
back as the Secretary of DHS.”

“I’m going to have trouble with this,” Ron said, “I’m not used to working with the gov-
ernment instead of against them.”

“It does feel a little strange partner, I’ll admit that,” Gary agreed, “But we’re all in this to-
gether and it’s just like Dubya said, either you’re on our side or you’re the enemy.”

“If we have an insider, it would make it a whole lot easier,” Ray agreed, “Someone bet-
ter get in contact with Ray Marshall and get that information. Then we’ll figure out where
they’re likely to strike, split up and work against them from all three locations.”

Gary picked up the sat phone and dialed the number written on the paper.

“White House switchboard, how may I direct your call?” the woman asked.

“This is Gary Olsen and I’m trying to reach Ray Marshall, the Secretary for Homeland
Security,” Gary explained.

“One moment please, I’ll connect your call,” the operator said.

“Ray Marshall,” Ray answered.

“Gary Olsen,” Gary announced, “How’s the new job?”

“Busy, Gary,” Marshall said, “We seem to be one step behind these guys at every turn.”

542
“That’s why I’m calling Ray,” Gary explained, “We’re having this skull session out here
in California and we think we may be able to help if we know exactly which targets have
been hit in chronological order. We have a little experience at this you know.”

“I’d fax you the information but the phones are down Gary,” Marshall offered.

“No problem, we have a computer hooked up to a sat phone Ray,” Gary said, “Fax the
information to 619-555-1212.”

“I get it sent within the next hour,” Marshall replied.

“Talk to you later, Ray,” Gary said, “Do you need to know what we’re going to be doing
or should we just do it?”

“Gary, you may have more people to deal with than you have personnel,” Ray respond-
ed. “Let us know when you need help.”

“And he just picks up the phone and calls the White House, for crying out loud,” Ron
said. “Hi Ray, how’s the new job? Talk about sleeping with the enemy! Why didn’t you
invite the President out for more leftovers?”

“I thought the leftovers were gone, or I would have,” Gary laughed.

“We have a fax coming in on the sat phone,” Derek announced.

“That was quick,” Gary smiled, “Must have been expecting the call.”

With the information provided by DHS, they were able to map the attacks. It appeared
that Ray Marshall was right, there were too many groups operating within the country
for them to take them all on. They picked the groups they would try and take out, re-
duced the whole thing to writing and called Marshall back. Gary explained what the
Freedom Riders were going to do and suggested that DHS get the Army or someone to
deal with the groups they couldn’t handle. The three of them would stay at the Village
and coordinate all of the group’s activities by Ham radio. Marshall wanted to know how
the Army would be able to identify the Freedom Riders so that they could leave them
alone.

“We’ll be the ones with the Interceptor vests with the Gadsden flag on the back.” Gary
had told the Secretary.

“Probably just painting on a bulls eye for them to shoot at,” Ron grumbled.

“If anyone shoots at us,” Gary replied tersely, “We’ll shoot back.”

One of the retired vet’s wife did silk screening as a hobby and she agreed to make up

543
the screen and apply the flag pattern to the vests using a fluorescent yellow paint. She
had plenty of help and was cranking out the imprinted vests in no time. While they wait-
ed for the vests to be completed, they finalized their plans. Gary, Ron and Clarence
would coordinate the operations of the three groups with DHS and except for a small
detachment to provide security, everyone would be on the road; hunting season was
about to open.

The terrorists were divided up into 3 and 4 person teams that typically tried to pass
themselves off as Hispanic tourists. They had invested in motor homes and were ‘vaca-
tioners’, caught away from home by the tragic events. Each team had an AOR where
they were tasked with attacking electric substations, power lines, generating facilities
and pipelines. If the area also included a principal, exposed, water supply they also had
contaminants to foul the water. It didn’t matter that the contaminants weren’t of sufficient
concentration or in sufficient quantity to kill millions because a contaminated water
source was nevertheless unusable.

“It looks to me like there’s a pattern in how these terrorists are moving around,” Ron
said, “Look here guys, most of these attacks are in the area of some attraction of some
sort.”

“What do you mean Ron?” Clarence asked, “What attractions?”

“Tourist traps Clarence,” Ron explained, “All of those historic sites and natural wonders
that folks try to capitalize on to get money into their communities. In this area here,” he
said pointing to a map, “The attacks pretty much follow the same route Linda and the
kids and I took when we were in vacation in that area a few years ago.”

“Sounds like they’ve been reading a page out of our book,” Gary observed.

“Why not Gar-Bear, it worked for us,” Ron replied.

“Do we have anyone in the area?” Gary asked.

“That would be Bill and his bunch,” Clarence said looking at the resident’s assignments.

“What did they hit last Ron?” Gary asked.

“An electrical substation, right here,” Ron replied again pointing at the map.

“Where did Linda and you go after you were there?” Gary probed.

“Come on partner, it can’t be that simple,” Ron protested.

“How did Linda and you pick where you went Ron?” Gary wanted to know.

544
“Uh, a guidebook from AAA,” Ron replied.

It really was just that simple. The terrorists had identified the targets that they wanted to
hit and had come up with the idea of masquerading as Hispanic tourists. The easiest
source of cover attractions in their AOR’s had been travel guides. So, they planned their
attacks based on recommendations in the guidebooks of attractions to visit. When there
wasn’t an attraction in the immediate area of their next attack, they simply made the
necessary detour along the way. Gary, Ron and Clarence didn’t have a complete set of
AAA guidebooks; probably only AAA had them in their regional offices. A sat call later,
Ray Marshall had people all over the country breaking into AAA offices and retrieving
guidebooks. He faxed the geezers the pages they wanted and began distributing the
other books to the military. Having a friend in camp was beginning to pay off.

Ray and Ryan only really had about 20 people, including themselves, after they left be-
hind a few men to guard Benton Village. That gave them 5 4-man teams. The redhead
would sit this one out and supplement the same guard force. Ron contacted Ray by sat
phone and filled him in on their discovery. He also passed along 5 areas and the proba-
ble itineraries to his northern ally. Since Ray Marshall was gone and John Robins and
his wife had moved to Freedom Village, the folks at the Mt. Weather Resort were hard
pressed to come up with anything more than a 3-man team. Marshall must have sensed
it would be a problem for them because he sent along a retired Gunnery Sergeant he
knew to ‘advise’ the 3 men at the resort. Jim advised Freedom Village that they could
mount one 4-man team and were given a travel guide itinerary for nearby Virginia.

“I love it when a plan comes together,” Ron smiled.

“What plan Ronald?” Gary asked. “We don’t have a plan. What we have is a lucky break
and a bunch of stupid terrorists. We never followed a set plan when we did our raids
that I can remember.”

“But Gary, they probably have a plan B,” Clarence pointed out.

“Like we did?” Gary laughed. “My memory may be poor, but it seems to me that when a
plan didn’t work out, we usually had to start over. I don’t want to sit around this envi-
ronmental nightmare and let everyone else have all the fun. I want to ride!”

“Then go saddle up Salina and ride, you old goat,” Ron said, “We’re too old to go look-
ing for trouble.”

“But I’d be ok to fight if trouble came looking for us, I suppose?” Gary snarled.

“That’s different Gar-Bear and you know it,” Ron replied. “Beside if you’re here in the
Village, you’d have someone to carry your rifle for you.”

“Ah, bull Ron,” Gary said, “We need to go over to Palm Springs and help those folks

545
protect that turbine farm, or something. I can ride passenger in a dune buggy, Clarence
can drive and you can be up top.”

“Hey, I want to be up top,” Clarence protested.

“Ok Clarence, Ron’s a maniac behind a wheel, but if that’s what it takes to get some ac-
tion, I’ll ride with my eyes closed,” Gary offered.

“You’d better wear a blindfold after a crack like that Gar-Bear,” Ron smiled, “Ok we’ll go
to Palm Springs and protect the wind turbines. Although for the life of me, I can’t imag-
ine anyone knocking down 3,000 wind turbines.”

Gary, be careful what you wish for, God has a sense of humor and he might just give
you what you want, again. And just where in the hell did getting what you wanted ever
get you? Getting what you wanted caused that rapid onset of the diabetic neuropathy;
remember? Anyway the three old guys filled up the 33-gallon beer keg fuel tank, loaded
the Mk-19 for Gary and the Ma-Deuce for Clarence and headed to Palm Springs, leav-
ing a retired SM in charge of the Village. It was more downhill than uphill and they ar-
rived in the Coachella Valley in a couple of hours.

It didn’t appear that anyone was bothering the turbines, but Gary insisted that they park
on a hill and keep watch on the turbines. Around dark, Ron pointed out that God must
have lost his sense of humor and suggested that they return to the Village. Gary pointed
out that they hadn’t driven for 2 hours just to give up after ‘a few minutes’ and insisted
that they spend the night. They had their night vision equipment and he pointed out that
they were right above I-10. If anyone was going to attack the turbines, he insisted,
they’d ‘have to use I-10’.

Rather than argue, Ron caved in. Clarence didn’t care one way or the other; he had the
best view in town. They ended up taking turns dozing and watching. Around 3am, Gary
felt a sharp kick from Clarence. He started to say something and then remembered
where they were and why they were there. He looked at Clarence and Clarence pointed
toward the wind farm. Gary rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and pulled up the binocu-
lars to take a look. The sight of a parked Winnebago motor home and four Hispanic
looking guys dismounting the vehicle greeted his eyes. “What would 4 Mexicans be do-
ing in a wind park at 3am,” he wondered. Gary nudged Ron and then shushed him
when he snapped awake. Gary pointed to the Winnebago and the 4 men. Ron started
up the vehicle and eased it down the hill across I-10 and about 500-yards from the Win-
nebago.

546
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 20 – Chili Peppers

After they parked, Gary couldn’t stand it anymore and asked Ron for his opinion. “Ron,
what would 4 Mexicans be doing in a wind park at 3am?”

“They’re probably looking for chili peppers, idiot! How the hell would I know what 4 Mex-
icans would be doing in a wind park at 3am?”

“Maybe they’re looking for arrowheads, Gary,” Clarence whispered.

“Shut up and cock that machine gun Clarence,” Gary whispered back. “Arrowheads?
Sheesh!”

Ron took the lead and shouted, “Alto!”

They four men looked up and spotted the dune buggy but acted like Ron was speaking
a foreign language. Gary cocked the Mk-19 and the men slowly raised their hands. In
his best Spanish, Ron called out, “Habla Inglesa?” The four men looked bewildered and
Ron knew that so far the 3 words of Spanish he’d managed to get out were close
enough to the real thing that they should have been able to understand him. He was
about to try one more time when one of the men asked, with a British accent, “Why are
you pointing firearms at us gentlemen?”

“US Marshals,” Ron quickly replied, hoping he’d remembered to bring his badge. “Let
me see some identification.”

“Let me see yours, Marshal,” the same man spoke.

Ron had about enough of this and he fumbled for his ID case, which he finally remem-
bered was in his shirt pocket. He grabbed the MP5/10SD6 (10mm) dismounted and
cocked the submachine gun. He held up his badge and one of the men made a quick
move as if he was going for a gun. The little submachine gun spat out a 3-round burst
and the unfortunate man folded up like an accordion. Clarence added emphasis to
Ron’s action by firing a short burst over the three men’s heads. The man had been
reaching for his wallet, but his 3 companions also quickly reached and it wasn’t for any
wallets. Clarence cut them down with a slightly longer burst aimed 3 feet lower.

“Crap partner, we might never know who they are now,” Ron groused and approached
the men.

One of them wasn’t fully expired and his last words were “Allahu akbar kabeeran wal
hamdulillahi katheeran wa subhaanallahi bukratan wa a seelaa.” (translation: Allah is
the Greatest, very great. Praise be to Allah, again and again.)

“Never mind, that sounded like Arabic,” Ron said, “Guys I think we just shot us a bunch
or ragheads.”

547
“Ok, we can go home now,” Gary said.

“Go home?” Ron said, “Are you out of your mind? These guys were terrorists!”

“I know, Ron,” Gary replied, “But who is going to believe us?”

“I’m going to check out that RV,” Ron said.

About 10 minutes later, Ron emerged from the Winnebago with a look of triumph on his
face. He had a AAA travel guide in his hand,

“Fire up that 10-meter radio and let Freedom Village know that the terrorists may be
disguised as Mexicans and may be driving RV’s,” he insisted, throwing Gary the open
travel guide.

The travel guide was open to a page that showed an itinerary. It had circles around
several communities, including Palm Springs, and some of the circles had an “X”
through them. Gary thought he recognized some of the names as targets that had been
hit. The last city with an “X” had been hit just the day before, according to the update
from DHS that they’d seen before they left. Gary fired up the 10-meter radio and filled in
the SM at the Village. The 3 of them then loaded the bodies onto the Winnebago and
Ron set off eastbound driving the RV. Clarence crawled into the driver’s seat of the
dune buggy and they trailed along behind.

Freedom Village…

When they arrived, there was one of those big Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk’s sitting
there, with a couple of Marines guarding the chopper. They parked the Winnebago and
the dune buggy and went into the security office.

“Been doing a little hunting of your own?” the Marine Captain asked.

“Ron and Clarence had all the fun,” Gary groused, “I didn’t even get to shoot the Mk-
19.”

“Where are the bodies?” the Captain asked. “Did you leave them or bring them back
with you?”

“The ragheads bodies are in the Winnebago,” Ron announced proudly.

“We’ll search the Winnebago and then you can have it,” the Captain said. “We’ll haul
those bodies back to Yuma for identification. You didn’t shoot them up beyond recogni-
tion, I hope.”

The three geezers repeated what they’d learned, this time giving the full version. The

548
Captain looked at the travel guide with interest and pointed out something to the guys
that they’d missed, San Clemente was circled. San Clemente was just 10 miles north of
the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. Although the plant was well guarded by a
contingent of Marines from Camp Pendleton, had the terrorist been able to gain access
to the plant, it would have been a disaster. And SONGS generated a substantial portion
of the energy for southern California and even taking out the transmission lines would
have had a significant effect on the electrical grid.

“Crap, if I’d known that they were going to give us the Winnebago, I would have put
plastic down,” Ron belly ached.

The Marines put the 4 corpses in body bags and loaded them aboard the Blackhawk.
After thoroughly searching the RV they fired up the chopper and left. Gary was tired and
he’d missed his evening meds, so he took his pills and insulin and went to bed. Ron and
Clarence weren’t in much better shape, although they had remembered to take their
meds with them to Palm Springs. They took their pills and called it a night, too. Is it cor-
rect to say they called it a night if they went to bed at 9am?

Washington…

“How’s it looking Ray?” Santorum asked.

“The old guys were pretty much on the money about everything, Mr. President,” Mar-
shall replied. “We’ve caught or killed several of the terrorist teams. Fortunately with the
electricity down, we’ve managed to keep this information off the news. The water sup-
plies were contaminated, but we can deal with that. There haven’t been many additional
deaths attributed to the attacks either. Apparently people who were dependent upon
electric power for medical equipment had generators. Oh, Gary, Ron and Clarence went
over to Palm Springs on their own and took out a terrorist team.”

“You don’t say,” Santorum chuckled. “Just couldn’t sit still and let the younger folks han-
dle the problem?”

“I suspect the Gary just wanted an excuse to shoot that Mk-19,” Marshall replied, “But
Ron shot one of the men and Clarence gunned down the other 3 with a Ma-Deuce.”

“How much longer until we’ve wrapped this problem up Ray?” Santorum asked.

“Two or three weeks, Mr. President,” Ray replied, “They’re spread out all over the coun-
try. But since we know where they’re likely to strike, it’s proving to be easier than we
first thought it would be.”

“Our boys got people out all over the country?” Santorum asked.

“They have a 4-man team working in Virginia, Ray Benton has 5 4-man teams working
the northern area around Wyoming and Colorado and Freedom Village put out several

549
teams to cover Arizona, Nevada and southern California,” Marshall explained.

“Why did we even bother to send out our people?” Santorum asked. “Those old guys
probably would have cleaned up the whole mess themselves, if we’d have just let them
run loose for a while. Keep me informed Ray, we’ve got to get the power back up and
everything repaired.”

“Yes Sir, Mr. President,” Marshall acknowledged.

Freedom Village…

“I’ve got to quit staying up nights,” Gary said, “Gets my system all out of whack.”

“Don’t look at me Gar-Bear, I was all in favor of coming home,” Ron shrugged, “But no,
you wanted to stay up all night and play hero.”

“That’s a pretty nice machine gun,” Clarence observed, “I wonder how it would do on
rabbits?”

“I’m sure it would kill them Clarence, and you wouldn’t have to worry about cleaning
them either,” Ron said, “Assuming you could even find anything after you shot the rab-
bit.”

“That’s ok Ron,” Clarence responded, “Rabbits don’t taste like chicken anyway.”

“I guess we’ve saved the world again, so we don’t need to go out anymore,” Gary an-
nounced.

“What makes you say that, partner?” Ron asked, “Surely you don’t believe that there
were only 4 terrorists, do you?”

“Not at all, but we got our 4 and besides I didn’t even get to shoot the Mk-19,” Gary la-
mented. “I don’t particularly like rabbit either; maybe I could use the Mk-19 to hunt rab-
bits when Clarence goes rabbit hunting with that Ma-Deuce.”

It seemed obvious that the outing had broken the tension that the terrorist attacks had
caused because the three old geezers were back to their clowning around. Their hap-
pening across the 4 terrorists in Palm Springs was a fluke that defied the odds. And had
they actually had an opportunity to question the 4 men and succeeded in getting them
to talk, they might have learned that the target was the control station, not the turbines.
Ron did have a way about him that just seemed to get to folks to pour out their souls.
Their responsibilities resolved into collecting information from the various teams and
passing it along to Ray Marshall or one of his representatives.

Unfortunately, the people’s right to know resulted in the terrorists abandoning their plans
before ¼ of the groups could be captured or killed. The major broadcasters had learned

550
from their earlier experiences and had standby power readily available. Apparently so
did the satellite TV providers because a week into the emergency, TV was available and
many radio stations were back on the air. Not that it made much sense; lots of people
had battery-operated radios, but how many had battery operated TV’s? And, it hadn’t
been the terrorists who had shut down the phone system, rather the government. How-
ever, as soon as it became apparent that the terrorists weren’t using the phones and
Internet to communicate, the government authorized the phone companies to resume
service.

Faced with certain capture, the terrorists simply blended back into the American popula-
tion to wait for the Americans to become complacent once more. That was one of the
beauties of opposing the Americans. As soon as the danger had passed and order been
restored, major portions of the population seemed to forget all about the danger. Some
might take precautions, such as acquiring a backup generator or putting up a few extra
cans of beans or something, but as a whole the people resumed as normal of a life as
the situation would permit. The vow to not kowtow to terrorists was a double edged
sword. When the attacks abruptly stopped and everyone started coming up empty, the
teams returned to Benton Village, Freedom Village and the Mt. Weather Resort.

Washington…

“Did we get all of them or did they just stop?” Santorum asked Ray Marshall.

“I think that they probably stopped when the news broke, Mr. President,” Marshall re-
plied. “But the FBI is trying to track down as many of them as they can.”

“A fat lot of good that’s going to do,” Santorum noted, “They probably came in across
the borders and have well established identities that we’ve never give a second glance
at. And, we can’t go around harassing people just because they appear to be of Middle
Eastern extraction. And if we try to maintain a high alert status, the cost becomes pro-
hibitive, not to mention that public begins to object to the inconvenience that that securi-
ty causes.”

“Mr. President, it will probably always be like that,” Marshall observed, “One of the
greatest tools we could have would be a National Identity Card, but the mere mention of
such a system sets off a majority of the population, including organizations like the
ACLU. The funny part of it is that many of the people who oppose the card already are
in the system. All states now require a fingerprint and anyone who was in the service or
had a security clearance or was ever arrested is in the system.”

“Ben Franklin said A people who will sacrifice freedom for safety are worthy of neither,”
Santorum reminded Marshall.

“Ben Franklin didn’t live in New York City on September 11, 2001,” Marshall pointed out.

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 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 21 – NIDC Scandal

“That’s true,” Santorum agreed, “But Americans have an irrational fear of something like
a National ID Card. Some people object to it on religious grounds, citing Biblical pas-
sages about the Mark of the Beast; others feel that it is simply too intrusive. After 9/11
that guy from Oracle, Larry Ellison came out in favor of them, but it didn’t go anywhere.
Are you recommending that we institute a National ID Card system, Ray?”

“Not at all Mr. President,” Marshall replied. “Although you do realize that President Clin-
ton signed legislation in 1996 which created the National ID Card, don’t you? No, if
Americans would rather be dead than safe, who am I to suggest otherwise?”

Both men were right. The law had been on the books since 1996. But Americans were
afraid of a little plastic card. Most people accepted the fact that you had to show your
driver’s license or some form of acceptable identification to any police office that asked
you to show your ID, but the idea that you would be required to carry a card that abso-
lutely identified you and could interface with a database where all relevant information
concerning you identity, criminal record, and could be used by the states as a substitute
driver’s license and as your Social Card by the feds, was just going too far…

Freedom Village…

Interestingly the three old geezers weren’t afraid of the concept of a National ID. They’d
be harder to counterfeit, but nothing was foolproof. All you had to do was get a writ-
er/scanner and scan a few real cards to discern the contents of the cards. Then, you
could probably go on the Internet and find a program written by some hacker that al-
lowed you to program the cards. It wasn’t a big deal to them either way. The govern-
ment already knew everything there was to know about you, so what was the big deal if
they put it all into a single database?

It was like the argument about firearms registration, which said that registration was the
first step in a process of seizing all firearms, yeah, if you were stupid enough not to hide
your guns. Besides a lot of guns traded hands from owner to owner and law or not, they
probably wouldn’t get registered and how likely was it for the seller to rush to the author-
ities to report the sale? Never happen. But the idea of letting your driver’s license carry
the legend ‘National Identity Card’ just set people off.

Tehran, Iran…

Abdullah bin Laden hadn’t expected the Americans to tumble to his ruse quite as fast as
they did, but he had a plan B and a plan C, if it came to that. Plan B called for his people
to lay low until the heat was off. Then they would begin a campaign of killing select
Americans. Since they had demonstrated that they could pass for Hispanics, they were
going to start killing those black Americans and let the Hispanics take the blame. It was,
in fact the very race war that Condi Rice had warned the President of. It would take the
form of an escalating gang war and hopefully spill over and involve the remainder of the

552
Americans…

Freedom Village…

Ray Marshall called and asked the guys to do him a favor. He had proposed a National
ID Card system to President Santorum, but had met with a less than enthusiastic recep-
tion. He was wondering if the guys were willing to be his first guinea pigs in an experi-
ment of the proposed system. He explained that the card could be coded to include bi-
ometric data, their driver’s licenses or state ID card and a credit or ATM card. The bio-
metric data would include a full set of fingerprints, 15 DNA markers and an iris scan.
They immediately agreed, but insisted on a demonstration of how the data storage sys-
tem worked. Marshall gave them full Internet access to the database set up for the test.
Marshall had commented that if the test were a success, the database would be ex-
panded and used as the primary database if the President could be persuaded to im-
plement the old law.

One of the vets who was a member of Freedom Village’s population had retired as a
Tech Sergeant from the Air Force. He might have gone farther in the Air Force, but he
kept getting in trouble over his hobby, computer hacking. Little did he realize that his
hobby had been the deciding factor in the three old geezers, who now preferred to refer
to themselves as ‘classics’, in accepting his application for membership. He was a
skilled MIS type and his part time job was to keep the Village’s computer network up
and running. He now gained a new responsibility and it had all to do with his hobby and
his abilities. Marshall had provided ‘front-door’ access to the database. The Sergeant
not only got into the system’s inner workings, he installed a back door as he erased his
tracks on the way out.

“I’ll go along with this National ID Card thing Gar-Bear on one condition,” Ron an-
nounced.

“What condition is that partner?” Gary asked.

“I think that we’re being singled out here,” Ron explained. “I don’t know why you’re so
suddenly trusting of a politician. But I do know we should have a complete set of equip-
ment so we can scan those ID cards and interface with the system. You know what I
mean, one of those electronic fingerprint scanners and an iris scanner and like that.”

“I don’t see a problem with that, my friend,” Gary responded, “I was sort of thinking
along the same lines myself. Besides, for this system of Ray’s to work they have to em-
bed something in the data on those cards that distinguishes the real cards from counter-
feits. We’ll probably have to analyze dozens of cards to find out what that is.”

“If that’s the case, Gary,” Clarence suggested, “Why don’t we volunteer the entire Vil-
lage population for cards. That will give you an excuse to ask Ray for all of that equip-
ment Ron wants.”

553
“Real cool Clarence,” Ron said, “You’re going to have the entire Freedom Riders organ-
ization in their database. Why don’t we just surrender now and save them the trouble of
arresting us later?”

“Now just hold on a minute there Ronald,” Gary said, “I sort of like that. We should have
them include everyone from the Resort and Benton Village. I have an idea…”

The website was the source of Gary’s idea. Unfortunately, the company was in the
United Kingdom, but it was most revealing about the technology that Ray Marshall was
likely to employ. If they could figure out what device Ray intended to employ to keep the
cards from being counterfeited, they were home free. They could generate all kinds of
fake ID’s and use the backdoor to implant the information in the database. But, they
could only do that if they had enough of the smartcards to analyze. The access to the
database and Ray’s gimmick would probably be the only things to keep the Mexicans
from duplicating the cards and flooding the country with fake cards, anyway.

Gary contacted Ray and suggested that his test would be far more revealing if the gov-
ernment provided the test cards to all the residents of the three communities. At first,
Ray was reluctant, he hadn’t planned on that large of a test, but Gary explained all the
advantages a larger test population would provide and won Ray over. Ray admitted to
Gary that he was doing the whole test on a shoestring budget, diverting funds from vari-
ous security projects that he didn’t name, to pay for the test. But, when Gary offered to
cover the cost of all of the cards and equipment for the residents of the three communi-
ties and for equipment so that they could conduct their own internal testing, Ray was
persuaded.

The Department of Homeland Security dispatched a mobile laboratory/programming

van to the Resort, then to Benton Village and finally to Freedom Village. Lab technicians
took swabs from their mouths and identified the DNA markers. A high-resolution digital
camera was used to record the iris data and their fingerprints were taken using the lat-
est digital technology. This information, together with information taken from the ques-
tionnaires they all filled out, was programmed into the highly secure, encrypted smart-
cards and the data was also entered into the national database.

An arrangement with West Virginia, Wyoming and California allowed the cards to serve
as their drivers’ licenses. A similar arrangement with MasterCard, Visa and American
Express allowed the cards to also serve as credit/atm cards. During the process of set-
ting up the ID’s some of the blank cards went missing, but the government types as-
sumed that they had miscounted, they were only missing 9 cards. The Air Force Ser-
geant was given the data scanned from each of the completed cards and he began his
treasure hunt to find that one thing on the cards that made each card unique and alleg-
edly insusceptible to counterfeiting.

Meanwhile, Gary, Ron and Clarence set about concerning themselves with the terrorists
who had escaped the net that had been set to catch them. They didn’t know if the guy

554
behind the whole thing had a plan B or C, but in his position, they would have. Wasn’t it
a shame that they didn’t know about Condi’s remarks to the President? They also made
a trip to Blythe to see if the smartcards actually worked. Seemingly, against all odds, the
cards did in fact work, at least at Carl’s Jr where they stopped for lunch. Satisfied that
the cards worked, they returned to the Village to see what the Sarge had come up with.

Sarge had discovered that each iris scan contained a spot somewhere around the iris
that didn’t belong. He had tracked the image to a jpeg file that contained some data
stored using 512-bit encryption. The spot was barely visible because it appeared to be a
text file of some sort and the color of the text was about the same color as the back-
ground where it sat. He had several computers working to decrypt the jpeg file, but sug-
gested that with 512-bit encryption, it would take a while. He pointed out that his discov-
ery of the image had been more of an accident than by design. Something just didn’t
look right about the iris scan displayed on the front of his card and when he’d examined
it closely, he discovered the spot. He speculated that the jpeg file and the iris scan were
combined early on to form the basis for the photo of the iris on the front of the card.

Washington…

“Anyway, I took it upon myself to run a test of the National ID Card, to see if it was a vi-
able idea,” Marshall explained to President Santorum.

“Who did you get to be your guinea pigs?” Santorum asked, “Not that I approved, but I
suppose we should test the system.”

“We have all of the residents of the Mt. Weather Resort, Benton Village and Freedom
Village using the cards, Mr. President,” Marshall replied.

“Do you think that’s wise, Ray?” Santorum asked. “Those guys will probably figure out
how to counterfeit the cards and make themselves a bunch of phony ID’s.”

“I think that we have a foolproof scheme, Mr. President,” Ray replied, “But the only way
to be sure is to let them take their best shot at trying to break it. Besides, every card is
compared to the database and a phony would kick out.”

Freedom Village…

“Got it,” Sarge announced. “That spot is the encrypted card number. So, all we have to
do is create an encrypted jpeg file that contains the card number. I didn’t figure it would
be too complicated, otherwise the government would have a nightmare on their hands
trying to uniquely protect each card.”

“So we can make up fake NIDC’s?” Gary asked.

“Sure can, Gary, what would you like me to start with?” Sarge asked.

555
“Make us cards that match these ID’s,” Gary said, handing Sarge each of their three
sets of phony law enforcement credentials.

“Are these real?” Sarge asked.

“No, but they’re good about one layer deep in the computer records,” Gary replied. “By
adding them to the NISC database, that becomes 2 layers deep.”

“How am I going to get the pictures and such on the front of the cards?’ Sarge asked.

“I have no idea,” Gary replied, “But I imagine that it’s a high-resolution version of those
gadgets some of the stores like Costco and Sam’s Club use to put your picture on the
back of your card.”

Within a day, Sarge had ID’s made up for Gary. He had decided to make 5 ID’s for Gary
including a duplicate counterfeit of his real ID and a duplicate counterfeit of the real ID
with the jpeg file from the original ID. He explained to Gary that DHS probably expected
them to try and counterfeit the ID’s and the fake ID with the original jpeg file would
cause a card number mismatch and be detected as a fake.

Gary, he suggested should use just the two fakes of the original ID and try them on the
DHS system. DHS would realize that they had tried to produce a fake ID, but would as-
sume that they had failed and the encrypted jpeg file worked. The real test would be us-
ing the second fake ID that was totally counterfeit. If it passed, the Villagers would have
one up on DHS and DHS would think they had one up on the Villagers.

556
 Preparations III – the Freedom Riders – Chapter 22 – Real Freedom

Gary traveled to Washington with Ron and Clarence, purportedly to check on the Resort
in West Virginia. While they were there, they got a hold of Ray and he invited them to
his office. Admission to the building could be gained by use of the NIDC. Gary tried the
card with mismatched numbers and was immediately stopped by the security guard who
seized the counterfeit card. The guard called Ray to come vouch for the three men and
Ray told Gary that the counterfeit card just wasn’t good enough. Gary, apparently cha-
grined, swiped the second counterfeit card and it passed. He confessed that they had
tried to counterfeit the cards, but obviously their counterfeits were no good. He never let
on that the second card was also a counterfeit. Ray admitted to Gary that he had ex-
pected that they would try and duplicate the cards but they should now realize that it
was impossible.

“We came pretty close Ray,” Gary said. “But, that jpeg encryption was a bitch. Are you
open to some suggestions?”

“Of course, what do you recommend?” Ray asked.

“That jpeg file sticks out like a sore thumb, pal,” Gary commented, “You need to just in-
clude whatever is inside the file as part of the card data. And, it probably wouldn’t hurt to
encrypt the entire dataset at a higher level than 128 bits, say 512-bit encryption.”

“Anything else?” Ray asked, taking notes.

“That spot on the iris scan was easy enough to spot,” Gary explained. “You’ll never hide
it the way you’re doing it. If it were I, I’d hide that spot in the pupil as black on black.”

“That’s a good suggestion,” Ray agreed, “We’ll look into it. And we’ll probably implement
your other suggestion too, although we might raise the encryption level to 1024 or 2048
on the card.”

“Gee Ray, won’t that slow the system down too much?” Gary asked, trying to dissuade
Marshall.

“With the computers I intend to use if the President will allow me to implement the
NIDC’s,” Marshall replied, “The encryption will be virtually transparent.”

“I see,” Gary acknowledged.

“We’ll be issuing you new cards if the system goes online,” Ray explained. “I really want
to thank you guys for testing the cards and the system. Both tests.”

The three old geezers left to return to the Resort. On the way, Ron was all over Gary,
haranguing him over the suggestions that Gary had made to Ray.

557
“Ronald, they expected us to try and counterfeit those cards,” Gay insisted. “I had to
wear my white hat in there. Besides, pointing out the obvious flaws in the system didn’t
hurt us one bit.”

“But what if they go to a higher level of encryption?” Clarence asked, “Won’t that make
the cards impossible to duplicate?”

“Clarence, we have over 200 computers at the Village,” Gary pointed out. “We’ll just get
Sarge to write us a distributed computing application and have our own super computer
breaking the encryption scheme.”

“If they do implement the system, how are they going to manage issuing cards to all the
people in the country?” Clarence asked.

“Well,” Gary said, “Let me polish my crystal ball here and I’ll hazard a guess. There are
96 FEMA offices around the country. Those offices are tied into the military’s new, se-
cure Internet system that they were forced to develop when the regular Internet got
swamped.”

“I never heard anything about that,” Ron said.

“It’s called the Tactical Internet and doesn’t interface with the regular net,” Gary ex-
plained.

“Real secure, huh?” Ron countered.

“Ron, a system is only as secure as the people who operate it,” Gary commented. “Be-
sides I suspect that it is possible to access the tactical net either by telephone or military
radio. We’ll just leave that up to Sarge and Damon.”

“How did we get off on this tangent?” Clarence asked. “I thought we were talking about
the NIDC’s.”

“We were, pal,” Gary agreed. “My whole point is that the real security in the system lies
in the fact that the primary database is part of an essentially closed system. Hell, if we
can counterfeit those cards, others probably can. It won’t do them any good, however,
unless they can access the closed system and that means accessing the tactical Inter-
net.”

Washington…

“They did try to counterfeit the ID Cards Mr. President, but they failed,” Marshall ex-
plained. “So, I am now formally recommending that we adopt the NIDC System, with
some modifications that Gary Olsen recommended.”

“Won’t using his recommendations just create a vulnerability?” Santorum asked.

558
“Actually, sir, his recommendations would make the system more secure,” Marshall ex-
plained.

“I am really reluctant to implement the NIDC System Ray,” President Santorum replied,
“But if that’s what it’s going to take to get terrorism in check, I’ll ask Congress for an ap-
propriation to bring the system online.”

The US was an interesting place in late 2013 and early 2014. After much debate, Con-
gress approved the implementation of the NIDC System. Ray Marshall put in a new,
dedicated computer system to handle the high volume of transactions that he expected
the system to receive. His analysts gave their best estimates of the transaction volume
and he multiplied those estimates by a factor of 20. Contracts were let for the new cards
and equipment. State Legislatures were forced into accepting the system by the threat
of losing all of their federal funding. Even a good administration and Congress could get
heavy handed when they were on a mission. Just as predicted, FEMA was in charge of
the project and they were operating the issuance of cards through their 96 regional cen-
ters. Marshall sent all of the original participants in the ‘feasibility study’ replacement
cards.

Freedom Village…03Jun14…

“How are you coming with decrypting those new cards, Sarge?” Gary asked.

“Not a problem, guys, “We broke their code in a few days. However, we haven’t been
able to get into the Tactical Internet yet. They obviously don’t have telephone access to
the system. Damon is working with some of those military radios we have to try and find
the frequency they’re using. However, they’re probably frequency hopping, so until we
can get in synch with their system, we’re out of the loop. Besides, I don’t see the point
to this whole endeavor.”

“Trust us on this one Sarge,” Ron replied, “There will come a day when it will be perfect-
ly clear.”

Eventually, Damon did manage to hook into the Tactical Internet and Sarge scrambled
to register their node, using every hacking trick he knew and a couple he had to invent.
With the access to the national database in place, they began to add records to that da-
tabase, 3 additional records for every resident of the three locations. Sarge also hacked
state record databases to get the identities they needed. With the database compro-
mised to suit their needs, the new, counterfeit NIDC’s were issued to the residents. And,
while Sarge was at it, he coded the records to indicate that each of the three false ID’s
belonged to a federal Law Enforcement Officer. Now, all of the vets were a US Marshal,
a member of the FBI or the Secret Service, depending upon which NIDC they used.
And, they had the counterfeit badges and LEO ID’s to back it up.

As one might imagine, there was a sizable protest by the public against the new system.

559
In the November 2014 elections, the Republicans lost several seats in the House and
Senate, barely retaining their majority in both houses of Congress. The President’s
popularity dipped significantly in the polls, but as the new system began to rout the ter-
rorists, Santorum regained a portion of the popularity he’d lost. Opponents of the sys-
tem were absolutely correct in their assessment of the NIDC System; it was very intru-
sive. On the other hand, the arrests of several thousand foreigners in the US on expired
VISA’s or without papers did not go unnoticed.

In an effort to combat some of the criticism his administration was taking, Santorum
proposed an amnesty program for illegal aliens, once their identity could be firmly estab-
lished through communications with their country of origin. The government of Mexico
had to be bought off at a tremendous price; they had far too much identification to pro-
cess. Other South American countries were less than cooperative, too; it seemed that a
lot of their citizens had fled repression and they weren’t about to help the people who
had fled their countries. The US is a melting pot and it took a long time to get the popu-
lation all properly identified.

But, such a system isn’t much use with the porous borders that the US had with Mexico
and Canada and steps had to be implemented to close those access routes. Despite
having fences, night vision equipment and all of the modern technology, the US Border
Patrol had been unable to stop the flow of illegals from Mexico. The border with Mexico
was 3,141km long and the border with Canada was 8,893km long including 2,477km
with Alaska. As far back as post 9/11, problems had arisen with the US-Canadian bor-
der. US agents were harassing young Canadian women attempting to enter the US and
Canada retaliated by barring entry to any American with so much as a misdemeanor
conviction on his or her record. Mexico claimed to be cooperating with the US but their
efforts, for years, had consisted of attempting to create more jobs in Mexico, a less than
successful program.

25Jan15…

Faced with continuing problems with illegal aliens, the CNN announcer reported, The
Senate passed the House measure intended to seal the US borders by a margin of a
single vote. President Santorum has indicated that he would ‘reluctantly’ sign the meas-
ure into law. For those in our audience unfamiliar with the proposal, the Congress has
mandated that a high voltage electrified fence, similar to those currently used in some
US prisons, be installed to cordon off the US-Canadian and US-Mexican borders.

Freedom Village…

“I tell you Ron, once they get that electrical ‘Berlin Wall’ installed,” Gary offered, “They’ll
have us all locked in.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it Gar-Bear, it will take years to build that electric fence,” Ron
tried to calm Gary.

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“That’s a lot of bull Ron,” Gary retorted, “They get the US Army Corps of Engineers and
a bunch of civilian contractors involved and they’ll have the whole thing in up in no time.
It’s not the electric fences that take the time to install, partner, it’s the protective fences
that slow up things.”

“My, my,” Clarence remarked, “Who would have ever thought that it would come to this
in the United States of America?”

“Won’t the governments of Mexico and Canada object?” Derek asked.

“The fences are going to be built on US soil, son,” Gary replied, “They can object all
they want; it won’t do them any good. I was all in favor of the NIDC System, but this is
going just too far. Anyway, we’d better get all resident’s to apply for Passports immedi-
ately. Who knows how far they’re going to take this thing? And, get Passports for all of
the identities, the real and the fake. At least they streamlined the Passport system with
the NIDC System, so getting a Passport is a snap.”

For its prowess, the NICD System lacked the most obvious of internal controls, specifi-
cally a fingerprint/DNA/iris/photograph comparison system. DHS was overly confident in
the system once the boys from California had failed to duplicate the cards and such a
comparison system would have more than doubled the cost of the system. Getting a
Passport was a simple matter of appearing at a federal office and swiping your NIDC. A
couple of weeks later, a Passport arrived in the mail. To handle the huge volume of
people applying for the NIDC’s FEMA had opened several satellite offices. Within a
month, everyone had 4 Passports.

“We’re too old to be out their raising hell, my friends,” Gary suggested, “But we have a
younger generation to take our places. I think that it is about time to put FEMA in its
place.”

“Ray Marshall is going to love that, partner,” Ron laughed, “Him being our friend and in
charge of DHS and all.”

“You misunderstand Ronald McDonald,” Gary explained, “We aren’t going to attack with
bullets and guns; we’re going to use computers. Don’t you remember all that talk back
in 2004 how the Muslims were going to bring everything down around our ears using
computers? If it’s good enough for that bunch of terrorists, it’s good enough for this
bunch of terrorists.”

“I resent the hell out of that remark, Gar-Bear,” Ron snapped. “Where the hell do you
get off calling the Freedom Riders a bunch of terrorists?”

“Yeah, Gary, we’re patriots and freedom fighters, not terrorists,” Clarence added. “And I
don’t want to hear any quotes from Shakespeare about roses or anything.”

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“Whatever Clarence,” Gary said, “All I know is that a lot of the things we’ve done over
the past few years weren’t that much different from what those terrorists tried to do. So
you can count out my participation in any more acts of violence. We can attack the
computers systems or we can just sit around and do nothing. Either way, as far as I’m
concerned, that’s the end of this story.”

© 2011, Gary D. Ott

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